Raging Hearts
by cyberdemon
Summary: COMPLETE! AU. Van and the gang are in high school Van is one of the most popular guys in school with a nasty girlfriend. Then he meets Fiona and everything starts to change. pairings V&F, I&M.
1. first day

A young blonde lady walked along the side of the street. She went by the name Fiona. She was new to the area and knew very little of the place. Currently she was heading towards her new school.

"What a nice place to live. It's so peaceful around here that I'm surprised that anyone actually lives here by how quiet it is," Fiona said as she felt a light breeze go past her slightly blowing her hair with it.

The place was a pretty good size too. It was lucky for her that she had already learned her way around the place because it was definitely helping her at that moment. She guess though that the reason that it's so quiet is because it's still early and she happened to leave her house earlier than necessary in hopes of avoiding anything that might make her late in case she did end up forgetting or if she took a wrong turn somewhere that she would've some time to get back on track to school.

Fiona was medium height for a woman and had beautiful crimson eyes and long flowing blonde hair that went down her back. At the moment she was wearing a black skirt that went up to her mid thigh and a pink t-shirt.

She couldn't wait to get to the school. She wanted to get there and meet all the other students. 'Hopefully the students are nice here,' thought Fiona with a smile. She was going into her freshman year of high school and was looking forward to every part of it.

Seeing the large school come up she put on a smile and started to walk faster the rest of the way. She started to pick up her pace so that she would be late because she sort of took her time walking there. She made it though and with a few minutes to spare.

The school bell rang a few minutes later and all the students were in a rush to get to their classes. With all of the people pushing their way through it made it hard for Fiona to see where she was going but she managed to keep her eyes on the door numbers trying to move through the halls to find her first class.

"This place is bigger than I thought. I hope that I don't get lost," Fiona said as she looked for the right classroom. With so many classes it made it hard for her to find room number 245. "200, 201, 202," counted Fiona as she read each of the numbers on the classroom doors. "How many rooms does this place actually have?" she groaned to herself as she kept reading.

She was too into trying to find her room that she wasn't looking forward and ran right into someone's back. Fiona fell backwards but the person she ran into didn't even seem to flinch when Fiona had accidentally ran into her.

Looking up, Fiona saw a young woman with long black hair that flowed freely down her back, deep purple eyes, and she was wearing a black skirt with a blue short-sleeved shirt on. She currently had a look on her face that told Fiona that she was definitely annoyed about being run into. She was currently glaring at Fiona with her dark purple eyes. "Watch where you're going," she said in a rather nasty tone. Fiona knew that she didn't run into a very friendly person.

"I-I'm sorry. I guess I didn't see where I was going. I'm Fiona," Fiona said slightly unnerved by her but she quickly regained her composure and put a smile on her face hoping to make a better impression with her fellow classmates.

"You must be new so I had better tell you a few things. I can tell that I'm not going to like you much. So stay out of my way. I don't need morons like you standing in the way of me fulfilling some of my dreams. So I'll say it again. Stay out of my way," she said right into Fiona's face.

"You had better back off Amy. We all already know you're a real bitch so it might make it easier for us to tell her all of that instead of her learning firsthand," came another voice that had a bit of amusement in them.

The girl Amy turned around to see another girl with an even more annoyed look on her face then when she had seen Fiona. This woman had brown hair that was pulled into four small ponytails in the back and two braids in the front.

"Whatever, I don't have time to mess with losers like you two. I've much better things to do and loser like you will only continue to be in my way," Amy said with great dislike in her voice as she walked off.

It had been about a minute after Amy had left before the woman had started talking again. "Hey there, are you ok? Do you need any help?" asked the woman in a friendly tone.

"No thank you. I don't need any help. I'm fine. Who was that? She wasn't very friendly," Fiona said depressed that she already had someone that didn't like her and it was only Fiona's first day of school.

"Her name is Amy. In my opinion she's the biggest snob on the face of this planet. I only put up with her most of the time because she's the girlfriend of a friend of mine. Although I don't see how he can stand her. Oh and about the way she acted, it's just how she normally is. Doesn't she have a wonderful personality?" asked the woman with a sarcastic tone in her voice. "She thinks that she's the best at everything. Her father gives her whatever she could possibly want, so it's no wonder how she turned out the way that she did. Oh, by the way. My name is Moonbay," Moonbay said with a smile as she held her hand out in front of Fiona.

"Hello. My name is Fiona. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm new here so don't mind me if I don't really know all that much," Fiona said with a smile as she shook Moonbay's hands. She wore a bright smile on her face at the knowledge that there were actually friendly people here compared to people like that Amy. She was very grateful for that one little fact. She didn't want a lot of Amy's running around.

"I thought so. That explains why I knew that you didn't look familiar, and why Amy was being real nasty. She was trying to set up her own ground rules for you to follow. Just don't bother listening and sometimes she will just walk away. That's the best advice that I can give you. Until she walks away, she will be sure to annoy you as much as possible. By the way, where are you heading for homeroom?" Moonbay asked in a friendly tone.

"It says on my schedule room 245. Do you have any idea where that's because I've been looking for a while and I haven't had any luck in finding it," Fiona said looking at her schedule.

Moonbay's smile seemed to broaden a little. "Great, that's my homeroom. I can take you there. Maybe I can also give you some other help if you need it. How does that sound? If you hang out with me, then no one but Amy and her friends will bother you too badly because I'm friends with a lot of people and the others that aren't nice no not to get on my nerves," Moonbay said happily with a smirk on her face.

"Thank you. I would appreciate it a lot," Fiona said with a smile. 'Wow. I've only been here a few minutes and I already have a new friend, and a person that hates me. What a day,' thought Fiona slightly amused at how her day was going so far. She felt that someday she would look back on this and laugh.

"You might want to hurry up because the late bell is going to ring any minute now. So follow me and try to keep up," Moonbay said from in front of Fiona. She then started to go at a fast walk down the halls.

Fiona snapped out of her thoughts. "What?" Fiona asked slightly confused. She then looked at her watch and cringed when she saw the time. "Oh no, I'm going to be late!" Fiona said as she ran right behind Moonbay.

As soon as she was by Moonbay, Moonbay took a quick look around the area and then took off at a fast sprint in hopes of beating the bell. Fiona was running right after her because she was the only one that knew where the room that she had to go to was.

Fiona ran along side Moonbay until they had reached a room. Moonbay ran in but Fiona stopped at the door. Taking a quick breath, she walked into the room. The first thing that Fiona noticed was the girl Amy. She was busy talking to people Fiona thought were friends of hers so she hadn't noticed Fiona yet. "Oh no. Not her," Fiona said quietly to herself.

"Ah you must be the new girl Fiona. I've been expecting you for quite some time and also looking forward to meeting you," said the teacher behind the desk. He was an elderly man with long hair that was balding at the top with what was left of his hair hanging down his back. He was a man that looked like he deserved a bit of respect. He also looked very wise and Fiona felt that she would like him as a teacher if she got him.

"Yes I am.I have just moved here from a place very far away," Fiona said kindly. She was glad to see that he was nice bit she couldn't help but wonder how nice some of the other teachers were.

"I have been expecting you here," said the teacher with a smile. "My name is Dr. D. I'll be your homeroom teacher for all of your years in this school," said Dr. D happily.

"I'm sure I'll enjoy it very much. I hope that I've your class. If I do, then I can't wait to get started if I've you class to be able to see how much fun I actually will have," Fiona said with a smile.

His features seemed to brighten up a little once she had said this. "Finally, a student who I might actually enjoy my teaching," said Dr. D happily with a clap of his hands. "Class. We have a new student. Her name is Fiona. I would be happy if you would give her some help if she needs it," said Dr. D very brightly.

Fiona then noticed that Amy had finally looked up and noticed her. She sent a glare at Fiona and then turned back and started to talk to her friends again. The rest of the class seemed to remain silent and just looked at her.

"Fiona you may take any seat that you would like," said Dr. D happily. He then turned around and started casually walking towards his desk where he took a seat and pulled out a book.

The first thing that Fiona noticed was Moonbay waving her towards her while pointing towards an empty seat right by her. Fiona happily walked towards it thinking that it would be a good seat to sit in because it was right next to her new friend.

On her way to her choice desk, she ran into a bit of trouble. She passed by Amy, who stuck out her foot in front of Fiona while Fiona was walking by, making her trip. Fiona fell forward and in an attempt to stop the fall so as to not hurt herself, Fiona grabbed the closest thing to her, which was the back Amy's chair. She grabbed onto it and ended up pulling it out right underneath from the woman. Amy fell to the floor as well and the entire class broke out in laughter.

Fiona quickly got up and walked as fast as she could towards Moonbay who was laughing her head off at the scene that had just taken place. "That ought to show her not to be so mean it was her own fault anyways for sticking her foot in front of you like she did. So you don't have to blame yourself for anything that just happened," Moonbay said through all of her laughter.

Fiona slumped down in her chair trying to avoid the death glares that Amy was sending her. 'Great. I barely got here and I already have someone that hates me,' thought Fiona as she slumped lower into the chair.

Homeroom had just started and she seemed to be the center of everyone's attention. "Don't worry about it. I say they forget all about what just happened in about ten seconds," Moonbay said as she looked at a watch that she had on her wrist.

"Why would it be in only ten seconds? Why not a minute or sometime around that?" Fiona asked curious as to what Moonbay meant. She had no idea what Moonbay was going on about.

"You'll see," Moonbay said with a smirk on her face. "5, 4, 3, 2, 1," counted Moonbay and as if on cue someone came rushing in through the door and crashed into poor Dr. D. The class broke out in laughing worse than what happened to Fiona.

The boy had dark spiky hair and very dark eyes. "Mr. Flyheight! I would really appreciate it if you would get here on time so I won't be run over every time that you're late for class," yelled Dr. D as he picked himself off the floor.

"Has this happened before?" Fiona asked once Moonbay's laughter had calmed down a little bit. She had to admit that it was a bit amusing but she didn't show it too much.

"Sure. Van does this all the time. Yet it never seems to get old watching him do that every once in a while when he's running late," Moonbay said chuckling a little bit every once in a while.

"Sorry about that old man," Van said as he quickly got off the floor and ran to his seat, which just so happened to be seated next to Amy. Before he could get there though, Amy had grabbed his arm and pulled him down.

Fiona couldn't help but giggle a little at what Van had just done not noticing what had just happened. Then she noticed how Amy started to flirt with him. It was disgusting how much Amy was throwing herself all over Van. Fiona couldn't help but feel kind of sorry for him.

"Disgusting, I know. he's my friend though and that's the only reason I put up with her like I said earlier. Although I must say that he has had a huge attitude change once he started to go out with her. The rest of the time that she isn't around though, he can be an ok guy," Moonbay said noticing what was going on.

"Is that so? Then I feel very sorry for him at the moment. Having a girlfriend like that," Fiona said looking away feeling like she just wanted to throw up at the way Amy was currently acting.

The rest of homeroom went by quickly and soon the bell rang to signal everyone to head to their next class. "Hey Fiona, what class do you have first?" Moonbay asked as they walked through the halls.

Fiona took out her schedule and took a quick look at it. 'Rats, I don't have Dr. D,' thought Fiona with a small pout. She then looked at the rest of the schedule. "Math," Fiona said after a short paused where she was reading it, "with Mr. Herman," Fiona said as she put her schedule away.

"He is a good teacher. You will most likely enjoy it enjoy it. Unlike mine," Moonbay said as she thought about hers. She had an older teacher. The teacher was very strict and was not afraid to yell at the top of her lungs if someone wasn't paying attention, and she yelled in a very high voice that at times sounded like nails on chalkboard. She cringed at the thought.

"How do I get there?" Fiona asked not knowing her way around. She looked in every direction to show she had no idea what way she had to go at that moment. She was lucky that Moonbay must know.

"All you have to do is go down the hall and turn left. Then just walk down the halls a little bit until you see the right room. Listen I've to go. Because I've to go to my English class," Moonbay said with a wave as she ran down the hall in the opposite direction.

"See you Moonbay," Fiona yelled back at her. Fiona smiled at her new friend as she started to walk towards her class, which Moonbay had kindly showed to her. 'I wonder how the rest of the day is going to go,' thought Fiona with a smile.

Fiona was walking happily towards her class when suddenly she found herself face to face with Amy and anyone could tell that she was not happy by the scowl that was on her face. "Do you think it was funny what you did to me?" Amy asked through clenched teeth. It was clear that at any moment she could snap.

"You tried to trip me. So it was your own fault, not mine," Fiona said in her own defense. She was really starting to dislike this woman more and more by the second. All she wished was that Amy would leave her alone. She just decided to ignore her and then she tried to walk around her.

Amy glared at Fiona really hard. She hated to be ignored like that. She moved back into Fiona's way and then knocked the books out of her hands very quickly and then pushed Fiona against the wall. She clutched Fiona by the collar of her shirt while she spoke. "I'm warning you. You had better treat me with respect," warned Amy as she pointed at Fiona. "Or else I can make your life a living hell," warned Amy with a deadly glare within her eyes.

"I have a feeling that you're going to end up doing that anyways or you already have so it would be nothing new," Fiona said because she knew it might get on Amy's nerves.

"You're probably right but I can make it worse than anything that you could possibly imagine. So you had better keep that in mind if you ever try to annoy me again," Amy said angrily. All Fiona did was keep a calm face showing that she wasn't interested in Amy's threats. That annoyed Amy more and she then pushed Fiona away from herself. It took a moment for Fiona to regain her balance. Amy then walked off with a satisfied smirk on her face.

Fiona bent down and started to pick up her books, which were scattered all over the floor. "This is definitely going to make me a bit late for class if I don't hurry up," Fiona said as she picked up the folders and papers that were now all over the floor.

"Are you ok? Would you like a little help?" a voice said from off to the side. Fiona looked over to see Van standing there. He had watched all that had happened between the two of them. He then walked over to Fiona and started to help her pick her things up.

"Why do you care? It was your girlfriend that did this. Don't you think that she will be angry at you for helping someone like me?" Fiona asked a bit bitterly and slightly angry about what had just happened.

"Just because she can be heartless at times doesn't mean that I'm," Van said seriously. "I'm Van, and I don't know who you're since I came in late. I know that you're new but what is your name," Van asked with a smile.

"It's Fiona. You don't have to help me. Do you know that?" Fiona said not really caring. She saw that he still kept helping her pick up some of her fallen things. She was very curious as to why he was helping her.

Van ignored her question and continued to speak what he wanted to say. "She is already warning people to stay away from you. Did you know that?" Van asked looking at her with a bit of amusement in his eyes. He didn't know any new people that could get on Amy's nerves that quickly. He was curious as to what else had happened between the two of them.

"I didn't know that. It might be a bit of a problem for me if it continues to go on," Fiona said was a frown as she picked up the last her of stuff and stood up with Van standing up as well.

"There are a lot of people who won't listen to her but it might make it hard for you to make a lot of friends. People at times can fear her so most might listen to what she has to say without any questions asked," Van said quietly. Fiona didn't respond. "It was nice meeting you Fiona. I had better get going," Van said as he stood up and handed her all the stuff that he had collected.

Fiona stood up as well and took the things that Van handed to her. "Thank you for helping me. I'm very curious as to why you would even help me in the first place if you're Amy's boyfriend," Fiona said nicely but a great deal of curiosity laced within her voice.

"It was no problem. Just please don't tell her that I did this or she will be on my case for a very, very long time and that's something that I really don't want right now," Van said with a sigh. "I have to go," Van said before he suddenly took off running.

After the little encounter Fiona had nearly forgotten all about the time. She did notice it a few moments later when the bell rang. "Oh no," Fiona said as she ran through the halls as fast as she could to get to class without being too late.

She stopped before the classroom and then she slowly walked into the door of the classroom and was met by a rather friendly looking teacher. Fiona was also glad to see that it was an Amy free room and hopefully it would stay that way.

"Fiona? Am I right?" asked Herman with a small smile on his face. Unlike Dr. D, he was a young man who appeared to still be in his prime. He had a friendly appearance but she could tell that he could be very serious at times.

"Yes. I'm sorry that I'm late. I just had a little bit of a problem. I promise that it won't happen again," Fiona said apologetically. She hoped that he wasn't too strict of a teacher.

"It's no problem. It's your first day so I'll let you off the hook. I'm you teacher Herman. Also, just make sure that it isn't something that starts to get frequent. Then I might have to punish you for continuously being late for class," said Herman with a smirk. "It's nice to meet you," said Herman holding out hand waiting to Fiona to take it in a handshake.

Fiona shook his hand with a smile on her face. "It's nice to meet you," Fiona said with a smile. "And I do promise it won't be a frequent thing," Fiona said with honesty on her face.

"Please. If you will have a seat we'll be able to get started with our math lesson for the day," said Herman indicating any of the empty seats before he turned around and walked towards the front of the room.

Fiona gladly walked to the nearest open seat and sat down in it. 'I hope the rest of my teachers are as nice as him, and Dr. D,' thought Fiona as she listened to Herman teach.

About an hour later Fiona walked out of the classroom with a smile on her face. "Moonbay was right about him. He does teach a good class," Fiona said as she walked out of the classroom. "Alright, next up is English," Fiona said looking at her schedule. "I will have to hurry in looking for it considering that Moonbay isn't here to help me this time," Fiona said looking around for anything that could help her.

"If you're looking for that classroom it's that way at the very end of the hall," said a man from behind Fiona. He stumbled back a little when she suddenly jumped up into the air. Her movements startled him a bit but he managed to pull himself together quickly and look at the beautiful woman in front of him.

This scared her slightly because of the person's sudden appearance and that he was looking at her schedule over her shoulder. She turned around to see a man with dirty blonde hair and green eyes.

"T-Thank you," Fiona said with a small sigh. She then turned around and started to run, but then she stopped and turned around to ask him his name but he was already walking in the opposite direction. 'I have to remember to ask him later,' thought Fiona before turning around and heading in the direction that he had pointed out for her. It was easy for Fiona to find the class after that and the rest just seemed to move by really quickly.

The lunchroom was packed with many people all wanting to get their food before all the good things were gone and all that was left were things that no one really wanted. Fiona couldn't blame them either because there were definitely some good looking things but then there was some stuff that she felt that she didn't really want to even try. Fiona grabbed what she wanted to eat or what was left in her opinion and walked over to pay for it. "That will be a dollar fifty," said the lunch lady.

Fiona reached into her pockets to get the money when she realized that she didn't have her money. "That's strange. I know that I had it with me earlier," thought Fiona as she felt everywhere in her pocket, yet there was no money there. Then the thought struck her. 'It must have fallen out of my pocket during the little thing with that girl Amy,' she thought to herself sadly thinking that she wasn't going to be able to eat at all today and right now she was very hungry.

Suddenly someone else put money down for her. "Here. Allow me to buy it for you since you don't seem to have the money right now," said a young man that had sandy blonde hair and green eyes. He was the same person that had helped her out earlier.

"Thank you. This is the second time that you have helped me out today. I don't know how I'll be able to repay you at for all of your help," Fiona said with a smile on her face.

"It was no problem at all. It's the rightful thing for a gentleman like me to do. Help out anyone that's in need, plus that and I had extra money so I thought that I would be nice. It's my pleasure to make your acquaintance," said the man nicely while he looked Fiona over. 'She is a very beautiful woman. It would be nice to have a girlfriend like her,' thought Thomas with a smile.

"I forgot to ask you. I tried to ask earlier but you had already left. What is your name? It would be very nice to know who it's that helped me out today and also to learn the names of my classmates," Fiona said nicely.

She put on a smile that he felt that he just couldn't resist. "My name is Thomas, Thomas Richard Shubaltz. What is yours?" Thomas asked putting on a smile as well as he paid for his food as well and then walking out of the lunch line.

"You want to know my name? My name is Fiona, Fiona Alisi Lynette. It's nice to meet you," Fiona said nicely. She seemed to be making a number of friends rather quickly and with strange people.

"I think I heard of you. Amy is telling people to stay away from you," Thomas said not liking what he had heard one bit. "Oh well. It not like a lot of the people really like to listen to her. A lot are afraid of what will happen if they don't though," Thomas said as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Why is that? Why is it that there're people that won't listen to her? Doesn't she threaten people to make them show her respect?" Fiona asked very annoyed by the conversation she had with Amy earlier that day.

"She comes from a rich family and they can basically get anything they want. That's why a lot listen to her. The reason other don't bother listening to her is because she's also a class a bitch," Thomas said with detest in her voice.

"I see. For some reason, it really doesn't surprise me in the least. It's easy to tell what kind of person that she is," Fiona said already knowing most of what he had just said. Fiona then saw Moonbay waving at her. "There's Moonbay I've to go," Fiona said walking off.

"Wait up," yelled Thomas running after her. He caught up quickly and then saw Moonbay. "Hey Moonbay," Thomas said as he took as seat at the table and quickly started on eating his lunch. He seemed really upset with some of the stuff he got.

"So how's it going? Having a good day so far? You know, besides the whole problem that you're currently having with Amy," Moonbay said once Fiona had reached her.

"Alright, I guess. Not much to know yet because it's still pretty early in the day to tell for sure how much fun I'll have," Fiona said sitting down and she immediately started to eat what she had. Fiona then looked over at Moonbay who currently had Fiona's schedule in her hands. "How did you get that?" Fiona asked as she searched through her pockets but they came up blank of her schedule, which means that that was definitely her schedule.

"Ouch. I feel very bad for you," Moonbay said setting down the schedule in front of Fiona. She has a very serious look on her face as if something bad has just happened to Fiona. Moonbay looked at Fiona with sympathy in her eyes and that made Fiona know that something bad has happened.

"Why? Is there something wrong with my schedule?" Fiona asked with a worried look on her face. When Moonbay didn't say anything, Fiona started to get really worried that something was really bad.

"I feel very sorry for you with what you have," Moonbay said whose face expression hadn't changed on bit since she read the schedule. It remained sort of in a scared position. She was scared for her friend.

"Why? Let me see that," Thomas said as he grabbed the schedule. He took one look at it and ended up spitting the food that he ha in his mouth upon his tray of uneaten food.

"I hate to tell you this Fiona, but you have one of the meanest teachers that this school has ever had. Doesn't take any excuse whether it's the truth or not. Not afraid to give out detentions for no reason. The dread teacher, Prozen," Moonbay said shivering at just the name.

Fiona was stopped form asking more questions by the ever annoying voice of Amy as she walked up to their table. "Now look here. It's the freak brigade," came Amy obnoxious voice.

Moonbay let out a loud groan upon hearing the annoying voice. "Go away. I really don't feel like listening to you for two seconds at lunchtime," Moonbay said clearly showing how annoyed she was by this turn of events.

Fiona turned around to see Amy with a bunch of her friends along with Van. Fiona was very curious as to why he just listened to Amy say all of those things when he didn't seem like a very bad guy earlier that day when he helped her pick up her stuff off the floor.

Amy reached down and picked up a little of Fiona food and threw it to the ground. "Hey! I was going to eat that," said an annoyed Fiona looking at the food. 'And I'm very hungry,' thought Fiona when she heard her stomach growl.

"I guess that you won't be eating it then. Unless you're the type of person that will eat food that has been places like on the floor," Amy said with a wicked smirk on her face.

Fiona had to use as much restraint as possible not to attack her right there and beating the living daylights out of her, but she knew that it wouldn't look good for her on her first day.

"I guess you aren't having a good day. I think that that's just so sad," Amy said sarcastically while still having the wicked smirk on her face at the pleasure of annoying Fiona.

"What is it to you? I'm sure that it's something that you don't really give a care about, and just for you to know, my day is going by just fine," Fiona said trying to control her temper.

"Probably don't have any popular friends yet. I mean you have Moonbay and she isn't much. Just a tomboy that's plain annoying," Amy said with a smirk as Moonbay got just as riled up as Fiona had been a few seconds ago. "Then there is Thomas. I'm still trying to figure out how you're related to you're brother. You two are so different. He was so popular and smart and you're a geek with no life of his own," Amy said with a smirk.

Now Moonbay and Thomas were losing their tempers very fast and if there weren't so many teachers around Fiona was sure that they would've been strangling Amy at this very moment. She would've enjoyed helping them too.

"Shut up! Just shut up already!" growled Fiona not wanting to listen to Amy insulting her new friends. She was the most annoying person in the world and Fiona wished that she could do something to make Amy shut up and leave her alone.

"What was that? I couldn't hear you because it all sounded like mumbling to me. Now, what was it you just said?" Amy asked still smirking. She wanted to know just how much Fiona hated her so that she could be prepared.

"I said shut up. You have no right to talk about other people like that, especially when you're just a person that has no feelings for other people's feelings," yelled Fiona causing people all around them to look at the two.

Fiona then had an idea. She looked around and grabbed Thomas's milk from his tray. "Here. Why don't you have a drink and cool down a little," Fiona said as she opened the milk and then dumped the entire thing all over her head making her black hair have many white streaks go through them.

Thomas gawked at Fiona's boldness. Moonbay was laughing her head off and Fiona could tell that Van was trying his best not to laugh. Everyone that was watching had shocked expressions on their faces.

"I don't believe that you did that to me. How dare you do that! You will regret this!" yelled Amy wiping as much milk as she could out of her hair. It only seemed to make it spread instead of wiping it off. She was pissed beyond anything she ever was before and she would not allow Fiona to get away with it.

Fiona had had enough and stormed out of the room not wanting to see anyone at that moment. She was pissed off worse than she had ever been in her life. Moonbay and Thomas didn't follow her because they were too busy laughing at Amy to even bother at that moment. In a way, Fiona was grateful for this.


	2. a friendship starts

Fiona was really angry by the time that school had ended. Actually, to say that Fiona was angry was a major understatement. She was just downright pissed off. The rest of her day was horrible and made her even angrier just thinking about it. it seemed as if everyone was out to get her. except for a few times that day, Fiona knew this had to be the worst day of her life.

Amy never left her alone after what Fiona had done to her during lunch, and then there were a few other problems that dealt with one of her classes that were directly after lunch. That class was the main problem for her attitude at that moment. 'I didn't even do anything wrong, it was all Amy's fault and I am the one that got in trouble!' Fiona yelled inside her head.

"I swear this day can't get any worse!" yelled Fiona as she ran down the road of the school just trying to put a little distance between them so she wouldn't have to put up with Amy. She felt that if she was to even catch a glimpse of her at that moment then someone might have to hold her back from knocking the daylights out of her.

Right now all that she wanted was to find a place where she could have some time alone in order to cool down a little bit. 'She is out to get me. I swear,' thought Fiona angrily as she thought back on what happened after lunch was over.

Flashback

Fiona walked out of the cafeteria in a big rush after what she had just done. 'I can't believe that I just did that. I must have been much angrier than I thought, but dumping that milk on her head was a strange way for me to start my time at this school,' thought Fiona in astonishment as she walked down the halls. Never before in her life had she ever done anything like that. It startled her a little because of that.

"Great. Now I know that she doesn't dislike me, she must hate my guts right now. She really deserved that though. All she cares about is her own self and not the feelings of others. She really needs to learn to keep her mouth shut at times or it is only going to cause more problems," muttered Fiona as she leaned against a wall while letting off a sigh. Her head hurt a little at the moment because of the amount of anger that was slowly building up within her.

Fiona had no idea how long it was that she was standing against that wall but the bell rang signaling that their next class was about to start. She was unable to hear it however. Even with the rush of students running through the halls, she just stood there in thought about all that had happened to her that day.

Fiona got off the wall and slowly started to walk unaware of what was happening around her. She walked around for a few more minutes until she finally heard the sound of the second bell and then she saw people running of late students towards their next class so that they wouldn't be too late.

"Please don't tell me that the bell already rang?" Fiona asked herself while taking a quick look at the closest clock she could find. She cringed realizing that she was late for her next class, which happened to be her history class, one of her favorite courses in school.

"Oh no. I have to hurry," said Fiona as she ran through the halls as fast as she could in hopes that she wouldn't be too late but she ended up making a few wrong turns only delaying her times even more. "This is not how I thought my first day would be. I am not making a very good impression on a lot of people, that is for sure," said Fiona as she ran as fast as she could hoping that she would find what she needed soon.

Even running down the halls it took about a minute to get to the class. She was lucky that she found it earlier so that she wouldn't have to ask anyone. However, it didn't help that she was in a rush and made every possible mistake in getting there.

She stopped right in front of the door that led to her next class. Fiona took a deep breath and she reached for the door. She opened the door and walked into the room as calmly as possible. What came next was not very reassuring to her confidence when a cold voice spoke.

"I do not appreciate people being late for my class no matter if they are new here," came the teacher's cold voice. He wasn't even facing Fiona so she wondered how he knew she was new here.

Fiona didn't like how this was going at the moment. "I'm sorry," said Fiona as she tried to catch her breath. She was still very tired from her run while just trying to find the class and now she had to deal with a very unfriendly teacher.

Fiona looked at the teacher and saw that he had long white hair with creepy red eyes. 'He doesn't look very trusting person. Why does stuff like this have to keep happening to me?' Fiona asked herself with a weak smile to the teacher.

He didn't seem to have a very friendly personality either. "I am Prozen and I will be your history teacher. Now take your seat so we can get started, and I don't want to hear a word out of you. Do you got that?" asked Prozen glaring at Fiona before he turned around to face the board once again.

"Yes," said Fiona but it seemed to come out in a bit of a squeak. Fiona looked around to find a seat and was not happy to see and angry Amy in the classroom glaring daggers at her. If looks could kill then she would be dead and buried by now. She guessed that Amy wasn't too happy to see her.

Things weren't going too well for Fiona right now since the only free seat was right in front of her. 'Why me? Does everyone want to make me suffer?' Fiona asked herself as she hung her head and walked to the open seat. She noticed the class was very quiet. She guessed that it was because none of them wanted to get in trouble. She didn't know how right she was.

Usually Fiona would have liked this class but it made it hard to like it when Amy was flinging pieces of paper at the back of Fiona's head. Fiona's temper was starting to return and Fiona knew that if Amy didn't stop annoying her like this then she was going to end up doing something that would get her in trouble.

She continued this and the teacher didn't seem to know or care that she was doing this. He just kept on talking about past events without even turning around. When a large piece of paper hit her head Fiona lost it. "Will you stop it?" yelled Fiona right in Amy's face.

Amy was a little surprised at the sudden outburst. She was able to quickly regain her composure though. She just smirked before Fiona attention was taken away by Prozen's voice.

"Do you have a problem with my lesson?" asked Prozen angrily as he turned to look at Fiona. His red eyes giving Fiona a look of annoyance but also with a bit of glee as if he was a child being given what he wanted for either his birthday or Christmas.

"She won't stop flinging things at the back of my head," said Fiona as she pointed towards Amy. The look that Prozen gave her was one that seemed to say that he didn't really care. Fiona was wondering why everyone was against her today.

Prozen looked at Amy for an explanation. "I haven't been doing anything," she said sweetly batting her eyelashes. "I was only listening to your wonderful lesson when she suddenly yelled at me for nothing," she said in a way that made everyone in the room sick except her and Prozen. Fiona could tell that she must be used to getting out of things like this through these sorts of techniques.

"I see. I will give you one more chance. If you do anything else then I will be forced to do something," warned Prozen once against turning back to the blackboard and writing down some things for the rest of the class to take notes on. He said all of that in such a calm voice that it seemed to send shivers down everyone's spines.

'Forced to do something? Yeah right,' thought Fiona as she sat down in her seat. She noticed that she seemed to be getting a lot of sympathetic looks from the rest of the class and she knew that it could only get worse than that.

Once he was turned back around and facing the board, Amy started to pelt the back of Fiona's head with paper again. 'Remain calm, remain calm,' thought Fiona knowing that she would probably have another outburst and that she wouldn't be able to hold it in if Amy continued to do these things to her.

Then a large wet piece of paper hit Fiona in the back of the head. 'That's it!' Fiona yelled into her head. She stood up very quickly drawing the attention of everyone in the class. She grabbed it and threw it right back into the shocked Amy's face Amy's face. It stuck there while murmured curses were thrown through it.

The entire class started to laugh but shut up when Prozen turned around to see Amy wiping it off of her face, and a Fiona who was breathing heavily out of anger. "It looks like you were the one that was actually throwing things. I am going to have to send you to the office for doing that," said Prozen gleefully walking to his desk and writing something onto a piece of paper.

"WHAT!" yelled Fiona out loud. "You can't do that. She was the one that started it all by throwing it at me! so you should have to send her too!" Fiona yelled right at him but that only made him smirk a bit while writing even more down.

"And for yelling at me," said Prozen as he wrote out a pass for the office with a smirk on his face. Anyone could tell that he loved to torment his student and that he obviously favored Amy so greatly that he didn't bother to punish her when she needed to be punished.

Fiona angrily got out of her seat grabbed the pass forcefully out of his hand and stormed out of the room. Many in the room seemed to give her some respect for how she stood up to one of the toughest teachers like that but many didn't think about it because she might not have known that he was just that.

Despite the situation she was glad that she was out of there. "This is the worst day of my life," muttered Fiona angrily as she walked down the hall. She felt like just going some place and yell out all of her problems. She seemed to have many of them today so she felt that it would do her good.

End Flashback

The office seemed sympathetic to her luckily. It seemed that they tended to get a lot of students from the class but she could not figure out why they kept him then if he was more trouble than he was worth. She was thankful that they let her off but also seriously angered at both the teacher and Amy since they seemed to have teamed up against her.

She was really tired at the moment. Fiona looked up at the sky and noticed that it could only be about three o'clock. School had already let out and she was more than happy to get as far away from it as possible. She let off a loud yawn while walking down the street. 'It is still early so why am I so tired?' Fiona asked herself rubbing her eyes and yawning again.

Fiona didn't really feel like going back to her new home immediately. She just walked aimlessly for a while until she came to a park that she had seen one her way to school. She walked into a park and immediately took a seat on a bench that she found. She set her things down and tried to relax.

The day was beautiful. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and it was comfortably warm. It wasn't too cold or too hot but just right. She could smell the fragrance of some nearby flowers and she closed her eyes for a few seconds and took in a deep breath. The enticing scent filled her nose but only seemed to make her more tired.

"Despite all that had happened today. This is very nice," said Fiona as she relaxed a little. She closed her eyes and felt a light wind blow past her. She sighed happily. Despite some of the people that lived in this town, it was still very pleasant.

She could feel herself growing even more tired. "Why am I so tired?" Fiona asked herself again yawning loudly while he eyes drooped several times. She grew so tired that she slowly drifted off to sleep on the park bench with a content smile upon her face.

* * *

Nighttime came and Fiona's eyes opened up only to be met with the bright lights from the lamps around her. "Oh no. don't tell me that it is night already. I must have fallen asleep," said Fiona frantically as she quickly got off of the bench. "I need to get home," she muttered as she grabbed her things in a rush and started to walk off.

"How could I have let this happen? All I did was sit down. How could I have let myself fall asleep in such a place? If I wanted to take a quick nap then I should have just have gone home and taken one. Not in a park where anything could have happened to me while I slept," she said to herself as she left the park in a hurry to get home. "My parents are going to kill me," said Fiona as she ran down the streets. 'This is definitely the worst day of my life,' she thought as she ran full speed down the streets.

After a few minutes of running she had to stop to catch her breath. However despite how hard she was breathing, she heard some footsteps. She didn't pay too much heed to it at that moment because she felt that it could just be someone going for a night stroll.

She started to walk again instead of a run because she was just a little too tired to run. Then she stopped at a corner trying to remember where her house was. She couldn't think straight because she was tired. She looked around but she heard the footsteps still as if they were following her. They stopped though as soon as she heard them.

She started to move again. She was starting to get a little scared. She continued to listen and they were still there. She got a little nervous by this. 'Is someone following me?' Fiona asked herself very nervously. She turned and looked around but found no one in her sight. She was thinking that maybe she was just hearing things or else it was just the echoing of her footsteps.

She turned a corner and walked faster and turned another corner. She then heard the footsteps turn the first corner and starting to walk towards the corner that Fiona had turned only a few moments prior. 'I am being followed,' thought Fiona as she broke out into a run.

The person must have heard the change of speed because the pace of the footsteps just picked up speed and continued to follow her. Fiona was positive that she was being followed this time.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god," Fiona kept on repeating to herself. She had never been so scared in her life. She just wanted to be home in her bed sleeping peacefully at that moment.

Hoping to ditch the person she turned another corner and ran without looking into it. Just her luck though that when she did look she saw that she had run into a dead end. "Oh no," Fiona said but it came out in a squeak. "A dead end," she said feeling like crying a little bit.

"Why did I have to fall asleep? I did that and now this is happening," said Fiona as she cringed in fear of what was going to happen. She turned around and stared at the entrance knowing that there was probably no way out of that alley without seeing her pursuer.

There she was just standing there. she was defenseless and the person was now turning the corner. "I see you knew I was following you," came a cold voice from the exit. Through little holes in the mask, Fiona stared upon ice blue eyes that looked so cold that they really could be ice.

Fiona looked and saw a man all dressed in black blocking off her only exit. He had on black gloves as well as having his face hidden behind a mask. 'I have to get out of here,' thought Fiona fearfully as she looked for any other escape route. Unfortunately there was none but the one she came in through.

"My, my, my aren't you a pretty one. You are so young and yet so beautiful," said the man as he advanced on Fiona. His eyes held lustfulness in them that sent shivers of fear coursing down Fiona's spine. "I bet that you are the type that has never been touched by any other man," he said licking his lips.

Fiona took a step back as he took a step towards her. She had heard of people like him that forced themselves upon others but she never thought that it could happen to her. "Stay away from me!" yelled Fiona as she backed away but he kept on moving towards her. That was when Fiona's back hit the wall. 'All out of room,' thought Fiona as she watched him continue to advance towards her.

"The look of fear is so intoxicating to me when I see it on such a young woman. It will only make things so much better in the end," he said reaching out for Fiona but she just moved out of his reach.

Fiona once again looked for another escape route but like before she failed to find any. She had an idea that might help her escape but it could also put her back into danger should it fail. 'I guess I really have no other choice. It is the only way out of here,' thought Fiona hesitantly taking a small gulp.

Using as much strength as she could muster, she broke out in a run hoping to get past the man. However fate didn't have it so nice as the man merely stuck out his arm and grabbed Fiona around the waist without all that much trouble.

"You are definitely a feisty one. I am so going to enjoy having you," he said with a sneer. He quickly managed to grab her hands before she could try to use them against him.

Fiona struggled against the man but he was much stronger than she was. "Let me go!" yelled Fiona as she continued to struggle. She was completely bound so she knew that it would probably be of no use but she refused to just give in and let him have his way with her.

He used his strength and held her hands above her head as he pushed her against the wall. Using his free hand he attempted to try and feel her up but she bit his hand and then screamed at the top of her lungs hoping that someone was close enough to hear it.

'Please let someone hear this. Anyone will do,' thought Fiona as tears started to fall down her face. She then felt him smack her hard on the cheek sending her falling towards the ground.

* * *

Van was walking down the streets kicking around anything around him. Things weren't going very good for him at the moment. He was muttering things like stupid school, obsessive girlfriends and other stuff. Needless to say he was not too happy about how his day was going.

He was currently kicking a can down the street when suddenly he heard a high-pitched scream. "What was that?" asked Van as he looked around for the source of the scream. He couldn't see anyone so he looked around. He could find anyone so he just stood still and listened intently for any possible noises to help him.

Listening attentively he then heard it again and ran in that direction. After a few moments of running, he found himself in the entrance to an alleyway where he saw two shaded figures and one of them was struggling against the other. "Let me go!" he heard someone scream. He knew exactly what was going on and he was not going to stand for it. Even if he got injured he wouldn't allow someone to do something like that.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Van charged at him in order to stop him. as of yet the man had yet to even notice the presence of Van and Van took that to his advantage.

The man that was trying to rape Fiona was suddenly through to the side very painfully when he was hit in the side of the face by a powerful punch. He fell back quite a bit before he hit the wall to his side.

Fiona fell to the floor too tired out from the struggling to see straight. She had no idea what it was that had happened. She was sure it was all over but then the guy just dropped her.

"Why you," growled the man standing up and pulling out a knife that he had concealed in his belt. "This has nothing to do with you so you had better just leave now before I end up killing you. So what is it going to be?" the man asked while his ice blue eyes focused directly upon Van.

"I just can't do that. It just isn't in my nature to allow someone like you to take advantage of anyone," said Van scowling at the man. He was scared to death of the knife that the man was holding but he was somehow able to keep from showing it. It was like some force was giving him strength. That he needed to stop this no matter what.

"So be it," said the man charging at Van. The knife pointing straight for Van's heart but Van just moved out of the way and the man fell face first into the ground. Before he could even get up, the knife was very painfully kicked from his hand and went skidding into the darkness. The man did the first thing he could think of then, he ran.

"What a coward," Van muttered but he didn't chase him though. He immediately ran to the other person. "Hey, are you alright?" asked Van in a worried tone. 'Of course she isn't you nitwit,' said a voice in his head. Van just shrugged it off. He shook the woman very gently in his arms trying his best to get her to wake up.

Van took a good look over the woman and he immediately recognized her as Fiona. "Hey aren't you Fiona?" asked Van trying to get a better look in the dark. He was then sure that it was her when her crimson eyes looked up into his dark ones. As soon as she did this however, her entire body suddenly went limp when she fell into a state of unconsciousness.

Van quickly checked her pulse and was glad that it was still there. Looking her over she was still in good shape. None of her clothes were torn or loose which means he didn't get a chance to do what her wanted to do. Except for this large bruise across her cheek she didn't look terrible considering what had just happened.

"I better take her someplace. I guess it will have to be my house since I don't know where she lives. Thank god that my house is close to here," he said a he picked her up and walked out of the alley.

It was strange; Van had only talked to her for only a brief minute before. He hardly knew her for that matter. yet, when he picked her up he got this strange feeling in him like this should happen. He shook it off however, focusing on only getting her some help.

* * *

Fiona's eyes slowly opened. The place was bright and it caused her to squint as her eyes adjusted to the light. Once her eyes adjusted she noticed that she wasn't in her own room but somewhere else. The place was very unfamiliar to her.

It was then that she remembered the events from before she passed out. 'What happened? Why am I here?' she asked herself nervously thinking about what had just happened. "Where am I?" she said aloud, looking around the unfamiliar room.

"You are at my wonderful abode," came a voice from behind her. Fiona was startled a little bit. She quickly turned her head to see Van standing there smiling at her. she was shocked to see him of all people.

"Good Morning," said Van nicely while walking over to the curtains and opening them up to show that the sun was already up in the sky. It looked to be late in the morning.

"Morning?" said Fiona quietly looking out the window to see the sun. She was too tired and her mind didn't seem to be working at full capacity at that moment. She was trying to go over all that had happened in her head to figure out how she ended up here of all places.

"Yeah as in the beginning of the day," said Van jokingly. He stood up from his spot on the wall and walked over to Fiona. He lightly placed a hand over her head to make sure that she didn't catch anything over the night. She didn't exactly look too good just by staring at her.

"What happened?" asked Fiona as she put her hand to her head after Van took his hand away. She had a serious head and it was really starting to get a bit annoying. She then felt a small bump on the back of her head and knew that that had to be the reason for why she felt so bad.

"You were assaulted. I saved you," said Van seriously grabbing a seat and bringing it right to the bedside. "Are you feeling ok? You sure went through a lot last night," he said, his voice turning to a very worried one. He didn't know why he cared so much when he hardly even knew Fiona.

"I-I guess," said Fiona slightly remembering someone saving her but she wasn't sure who it was until now. "Why were you there?" asked Fiona as many question started to form within her head. She was curious as to what happened last night after she lost consciousness.

"I was coming back from a dinner with Amy and I heard your scream," said Van trying to recall all that had happened that night as well. "I came to see what it was and I found that man try to rape you," he said slightly flinching at the word. "I didn't know it was you at the time but I attacked the man trying to stop him nonetheless. He ended up running away and I took you here since I didn't know where it was that you lived," said Van in a calm tone.

"Why did you save me? Did you just do it because you didn't know it was me? Wouldn't your girlfriend not like that it was me that you saved?" asked Fiona slightly annoyed at the thought of Amy.

"I said it before and I will say it again. Just because she can be heartless at times doesn't mean that I am," said Van with a slight smile. Even if I don't like to think like this, I wouldn't be surprised if she left you there after what you did to her yesterday," said Van seriously. He knew perfectly well that Amy hated Fiona. It was the topic of conversation at the dinner that he went to last night. He kind of found it very amusing though.

"Then why do you go out with her if you know that she is mean enough to do that?" asked Fiona. She figured that if she was in Van's place she would have dump someone like Amy the first chance that she got. She figured that there had to be more to it than what she thought.

"I have my reason," was all that Van said. He seemed to suddenly be very distant all of a sudden. Like it was something that he really didn't feel like talking about. His face seemed kind of hurt at the mere thought of the reasons as to why he was doing this.

Fiona was very tempted to ask more about it but there was suddenly a knock on the door that caught both of their attentions. "What is it?" asked Van to the person. The door opened and an older man that looked extremely like Van walked into the room.

"Your girlfriend is on the phone Van," came a voice of an older male from behind the door. The person had to be Van's father. He looked towards Fiona and gave her a comforting smile before handing Van a cordless phone. He then walked out of the room quietly.

Van rolled his eyes. He placed the phone up to his ear and was bombarded by the voice of his girlfriend. He knew that she could talk for a while so he tried to make it as quick as possible. "Excuse me for a second," said Van running out of the room so that he could talk in private.

A few minutes later Van walked calmly into the room again. he seemed kind of annoyed which was how Fiona would feel after talking to a person like Amy. He also seemed a little tired. 'Oh well, looks like I have to go back there again,' he thought to himself but he tried his best to put a smile on his face.

"Van. You said that she was heartless. So why is it that you go out with her?" asked Fiona curiously the first chance that she got. She knew it had to be pretty bad if Van acted the way that he did when she first asked about it. She figured maybe she could help him since he helped her.

Van was quiet for a second. He gave a sigh figuring that it would have had to come out later and he come somehow felt like he could trust Fiona. "Her father is my fathers boss. He gives her everything. Which is why she is a spoiled brat most of the time," said Van a little bit annoyed.

Suddenly it all became so very clear to Fiona as to why he remained with Amy even despite what he knew she was. "Are you afraid that if you broke up with her that her father would fire your dad?" asked Fiona knowing that that might be the most logical explanation.

"Exactly. Her father told me that also when we started to go out. To make it worse, my mother is sick and has been for a while. Even if she doesn't look it most of the time, she is. We have been trying to get her some help but if he gets fired then we won't get the money that is need to help her," said Van sadly. He hated to be forced through that but he had to do it in order to protect his family.

"Why did you go out with her in the first place then?" asked Fiona as she continued with all of the questions. That was probably the one she was most curious about. Amy and Van seem so much different; she wondered how they could end up going out in the first place.

"I didn't know back then that this would happen. I am stuck now with no way out. If I was to break up with her then I may be free but my family would suffer for it," said Van sadly. "At times it isn't too bad though. She is usually nice to me at least but I do wish she would stop thinking that the world revolves around her the rest of the time," he continued with a sigh.

"I didn't know," said Fiona sadly. Suddenly her hatred for Amy was starting to increase more and more with each passing moment. Her family was as bad as she was as well.

"Of course you didn't. I haven't told anyone about this. Not even my closest friends and my family," said Van putting on a smile. "Unfortunately most of my best friend left after I started to go out with Amy, they never did approve of me going out with her.

"Why are you telling me then? We don't even know each other," said Fiona slightly confused because he was supposed to be the enemy and yet he seemed so friendly and caring towards her.

'Why am I telling her all of this? I barely even know her,' he thought to himself curiously. "I honestly don't know. No one has ever asked me about it so I just keep silent about it," said Van as he scratched the back of his head. "By the way. Are you hungry? I have food," said Van as he pointed to a tray of food by a table.

Fiona didn't get a chance to answer as her stomach did it for her. "I guess I am," said Fiona giggling a little, which Van eventually joined in as well. Fiona couldn't tell the future but she could tell that he could become a good friend.

"So how are you feeling Fiona? Do you want to go home or do you want to rest some more before you do so?" Van asked with genuine concern in his voice. Despite how he acts around Amy, he is truly a nice guy.

"I guess that I should really get back to my place. I am sure that my mother is worried sick about me since I didn't come home at all last night. I was so stupid for falling asleep at the park," Fiona said quietly placing her feet over the sides of the bed so that she could stand up.

"I am sure that you were just tired. If I was then I would fall asleep anywhere. That is why it always happens at school," he said breaking out in laughter and Fiona followed him soon after. "Just eat something for now and I will walk you to your place afterwards," said Van slowly walking towards the door.

When Van was gone, Fiona started to slowly eat the food that he had brought her. She had to admit that it was very good. It mainly consisted of oatmeal, some fruit and orange juice. It didn't take her very long to finish because she was very hungry.

When Fiona finished her meal, she stood up and slowly walked towards the door. She figured that she had better leave soon or her mother would be even madder at her. She didn't want to get on the end of her mothers nerves.

Fiona slowly opened the door and walked out of the room. The house she was in appeared to be a kind of small but cozy two-story house. There were many pictures on the walls of the hall of the family. Fiona seemed to be entranced by them.

One picture seemed to catch her eyes. It was one that appeared to be of a young Van and who she assumed was his mother. Van was probably only four or five years old in the picture and he had his arms wrapped around his mother.

Just by the looks of the picture, Van loved his mother a great deal. She could see why he would want to go through so much just to make sure that she would be ok. It kind of made her jealous because both Fiona and her mother, although they love each other a lot, almost never saw eye-to-eye. It had been that way ever since both of her parents broke up. Now she just lived with her mother while her father lived far away.

"Oh, I see that you are up. Are you feeling ok miss?" came the soft voice of a woman off to the side of Fiona. When Fiona turned to look at the woman she immediately recognized to be the woman from the picture.

"Are you Van's mother?" asked Fiona earning a slight nod from the woman. What Van had said was right, she didn't really look sick. Her face seemed tired but still very beautiful for her age. She had to be only about Fiona's height but with very beautiful long hair that fell to about her mid back. She didn't have Van's eyes though, her were more of a bluish color compared to Van's dark eyes.

"Van is such a good man," she said looking at the picture that she had caught Fiona staring at a few minutes ago. "You were very lucky that Van was there. He would worry about others safety before his own. He has been that way since he was a kid. The care that he gives people would make some woman happy in the future. I just hope it isn't his current girlfriend," she said not really sounding too happy at the mention of Amy.

"Van doesn't seem like the type that should go with Amy either," Fiona admitted because she knew that the two of them were so different from each other. Now she knew why Van stuck through it.

"I am guessing that you don't really like her all that much either," Van's mother said with a smile knowing that the family was not the only one that had a dislike for that girl. The girl put up such an act that many fell for the lie that she was a sweet girl. She knew otherwise.

"I just started going to school here today and it is like she is already out to make my life a living hell. I would rather just have a normal life that doesn't involve fighting with her for no reason," said Fiona sadly while looking towards the ground.

"You remind me so much of myself when I was younger. You remind me of something else that I can't quite place though," she said trying to remember what it was but she just couldn't quite place what it was that Fiona reminded her of. She just shrugged it off and turned towards Fiona. "So are you heading back to your place now?" she asked putting on a friendly smile.

"Yes, I am afraid that I must. My mother is probably worried sick about me since I haven't come home or even called her since yesterday," said Fiona placing a small smile on her face.

"I will have Van walk you home so as to not have a repeat of yesterday," she said in a joking voice. "He can explain to your mother what had happened so you won't get into any trouble. You should come back sometime though, I liked having this little talk with you," she said and smiled when Fiona smiled at her and nodded her head telling her that she would as long as Van's mother wanted her there.

* * *

"Um... Van?" asked Fiona looking over towards Van while they walked down the deserted streets in the direction of her house. She Van turned towards her giving her his full attention. "Before I end up forgetting to say this. Thank you for helping me yesterday. I don't know of any way I can ever repay you for what you did," she said looking towards the ground.

"There is no problem in it Fiona. You don't have to repay me for it. It was what any respectable person would do for someone in need. But if you want to repay me then all you have to do is be my friend," he said shocking Fiona. "While being with Amy I am forced to be with her friends as well and it is driving me absolutely insane. As long as I am with Amy, my other friends won't look my way. Having a friend of my own that knows my secret will be a good thing," he said with a smile.

"If that is what you want than so be it. Your girlfriend won't like it though. It is really no secret that she hates my guts. It could only cause more problems for you," Fiona said after thinking it over. If Amy found out than she would force Van to stop it. If he didn't than he would be in trouble with her father.

"No one really has to know, do they? It can just be our little secret. We can make it seem like we are enemies but really be friends," he said when they came to a stop in front of the house that Fiona identified as her own.

Fiona really couldn't believe that he was saying that but in a way it made sense. She figured that she would really like to have him as a friend if it was known or not. "I would like it then," Fiona said walking towards the door. 'Maybe being here won't be so bad after all. I may have made a serious enemy but I am also making some very good friends. I think I will be able to survive,' she thought with a small smile but it faded when she knew that she had to face her mother.

When Fiona got to the door she hesitated a bit before she slowly opened the door. Much to her dismay her mother was standing right there with a very dangerous scowl on her face.

"Where the hell have you been young lady? You didn't come home after school or all night. You had better have a very good excuse as to why you never came home up till now. You could have called at least!" she yelled walking up to Fiona and waiting for any sort of response.

Fiona suddenly found that she had lost her voice. Her mother was really scary when she was mad. No thoughts were appearing within her head and she forgot her story. Just to think about all that had happened the previous night sent shivers through her spine. She had no wish to go over the subject again but she knew that she would probably have to in order to get out of serious trouble from her mother. She was lucky though when Van stepped up to help her.

"I am terribly sorry for it Miss Lynette. Fiona was unable to do anything because of something very bad that happened yesterday," said Van putting on a friendly smile. Many had said that he was a very good charmer when he wanted to be and he was hoping to soften Fiona's mother a little. "Oh forgive me, my name is Van Flyheight," he said in regard to her look of curiosity as to who he was.

"It is my fault mother," said Fiona stepping forward knowing she had to take responsibility for what she did. "After school yesterday I went to a park in order to cool down because I had a bad day. I ended up falling asleep there and didn't wake up until later that night. I tried to come home but someone started to follow me. I tried to get away but they tried to... tried to," she said unable to finish her sentence because she was afraid to tell what had happened next. It scared her to even think about it.

Her mother gasped because she knew what Fiona was going to say. "She was lucky that I was around at the time and that I managed to get rid of the pathetic excuse for a man. She passed out though and didn't wake up until only about and hour or so ago. Please don't be too mad at her because it wasn't completely her fault and I didn't know where she lived so I couldn't tell you," said Van seriously.

Fiona's mother had no idea what she could say. She knew it wasn't a lie because she saw how truly scared Fiona was to even think about it. "Oh Fiona," said her mother wrapping her arms around her daughter. "How can I ever thank you for saving her?" she asked Van.

"I don't really want anything thank you. Fiona already gave me all that I wanted anyways, her friendship," he said with a smile turning towards the door but Fiona's mother stopped him before he could start to walk home.

"Well then at least stay for something to eat at the least," Fiona's mother said making Van stop in his tracks. He just couldn't resist most foods. "Let that be at least the way I can thank you at least for now," she said with a smile. She really liked Van for what he did. He was the type of man that she wanted Fiona to have for a boyfriend or future husband.

"Sure. Why not?" said Van turning around with a wide grin. "I am sure that whatever you make will taste delicious," he said happier than ever. In just one day his entire life had changed but he didn't care. He got the friendship with a lovely woman, and a good meal. He had to wonder what types of thing would happen because of their friendship.


	3. Irvine's arrival

A few weeks past and everything appeared to be normal for everyone. Van and Fiona actually started to become very good friends and the best part was that Amy didn't suspect a thing from them. She saw them as nothing but enemies to one another. This made things a lot easier to them.

'Why me?' thought Van as he listen to his so-called girlfriend berate at him how much she hates Fiona. He had heard this over and over for the last few weeks and it was really starting to get on his nerves. Even if he did hate Fiona, which he didn't, he would still get aggravated of this after a while.

"She is such a bitch! I can't believe she did that to me! I swear that she will pay for that. No one can do that to me without paying a very serious price," said Amy as she talked on and on. It wasn't really anything big this time. Amy was just trying to find some way to complain about her favorite subject, Fiona.

According to what Van managed to pick up in his daydreamed state was that Fiona got a grade that was higher than Amy's in their last test in a common class that the two of them had. Amy thought she was smarter and better than everyone else and it angered her that Fiona could outdo her.

Van tried every once in a while to get a word or two in but before he could open up his mouth she would start talking again. 'Why do I even bother? She will continue on with this until the end of the day. Why exactly does she hate Fiona so much?' he wondered trying to think of a true reason. He was unable to think of one each time.

"And another thing, who does she think that she is? She comes and thinks that she will take everything from me," said Amy in an angry tone. She slammed her fist down on the desk hard which made Van jump out of his dazed state very quickly. "Van! Are you even listening?" she yelled seeing the state he was previously in,

"Sorry, I didn't get much sleep last night," he lied hoping that it would get him out of this mess. 'She isn't trying to outdo you, She is just trying to live a normal life,' thought Van as she continued to go on with her ranting. He had his face in his hands and was getting very tired of listening to all of this.

When the teacher came into the room and she stopped in front of the rest of the class and cleared her throat to gain the attention of the rest of the class. She was an elderly woman and her looks proved it. There was a joke going around about people making bets about how many hundred years old she actually was.

Van slipped and his head went falling onto the desk. "Ouch!" yelled Van as he rubbed his now sore head. 'Damn it, why the hell did I have to get stuck with the strictest and most boring teacher in the whole school.

The one good thing about the class starting was that he was finally able to get a rest from hearing Amy nag, even if it was for a little while. She was normally a straight A student and didn't want to do anything that could possibly put an end to that. She was determined to be the valedictorian for the class when they graduated in four years.

That was why she was so pissed off when Fiona managed to get a higher grade in the test. She felt threatened for the position and definitely for good reason. Van had seen that Fiona had never gotten anything lower than a ninety since she started school. Amy got a B every once in a while because she tended to get cocky.

Van jumped when a note hit him in the side of the head. He scratched his head slightly and opened the note and saw that it was from Amy. 'Aren't you going to say anything about this Van? She is trying to humiliate me!' the note said.

Van sighed and groaned as he turned it over and wrote a quick note on the back of it. He the folded it up and tossed it back to Amy who caught it without even trying. She opened it up and read the inside. 'I would rather not get involved. It's just a challenge. All you need to do is prove yourself to be better.'

Amy smirked and threw the paper away without being noticed she mouthed thanks to Van and then put all of her attention towards the teacher who was already putting half of the students to sleep.

Van just sighed and laid his head on the desk hoping to catch up on a little sleep because this lesson was already putting him to sleep. 'Maybe I shouldn't have put that. It might just make their arguments even worse than before,' Van thought.

* * *

A number of bells later, Fiona was in a hurry to get to her next class. She was running late because the teacher from hell, Prozen, had kept her behind because he thought she wasn't paying any attention in his class.

She had been though but he didn't seem to want to listen because Amy had said that she wasn't paying attention. Being that he saw her as the most perfect person in the world, he believed her and thus Fiona's current predicament.

'I swear the two of them must be working together to make my life hell,' thought Fiona as she ran down the halls. 'She must still be mad at what I did to her a few weeks ago,' thought Fiona not even really knowing what it was that she had done to make Amy angry this time. She tried to avoid her as much as possibly for Van's sake. It didn't help that Amy never gave up on anything.

'I bet she would be even madder if she learned that Van and I are friends now,' thought Fiona as she laughed at the thought of what her face would look like if she knew. 'I can just imagine it,' thought Fiona with a giggle at the thought. 'That would be just too good,' thought Fiona as she continued to run down the halls.

"Hey Fiona!" came Moonbay's voice. Fiona stopped for a second for Moonbay to catch up to her. She then started to run again once Moonbay was with her. "Why are you running late?" asked Moonbay running along side Fiona since they were going to the same class.

"Prozen," was all Fiona said but Moonbay understood. "I do nothing but pay attention and yet he continues to do whatever he can to make my life miserable. He listens to everything Amy says and only believes her when she says something. Sometimes I wonder if I will even be able to make it through the years with him as my teacher," Fiona said with a sigh.

"He hates everyone but Amy, so don't let it get to you," said Moonbay. "Someday before I graduate, I am going to get him for all the detentions he has given me," said Moonbay laughing at the idea. She was chuckling like a mad woman and it was making Fiona a little uneasy.

'Ok, ok, just don't freak out Fiona,' Fiona thought with a small nervous chuckle and was glad when Moonbay finished her creepy laugh. "Why are you late Moonbay?" asked Fiona suddenly realizing that Moonbay was running late as well.

"I was trying to get something done since my teacher wouldn't let us go until we had finished it," said Moonbay with a simple shrug of her shoulder as she continued to run at the same pace as Fiona.

"I see," said Fiona as the two of them reached the classroom just as the bell rang. She took a short breath before she opened the door and walked into the room trying to be as calm as possible. She was lucky that the teacher didn't mind coming in a few seconds late as long as it wasn't too late.

"Good we made it," said Moonbay as walking into the room right behind Fiona. The two of them walked to their seats and sat down quietly just as the teacher stood up and started to write on the board something without saying a thing.

"Only a few more bells and we will finally be out for the weekend," said Moonbay. She sat back in her seat and stretched out a little. "I have everything planned. Nothing but the good old R&R," Moonbay said with a dreamy sigh.

"I know what you mean. At least on the weekend I can get away from all that is out to make my life miserable," Fiona whispered laying her head in her arms while still keeping an eye on the teacher as he continued to write without looking at anyone.

"Oh cheer up. How does this sound? We can go to the mall sometime this weekend and we can do something fun that doesn't involve Amy, Van, or any of the other that seek your humiliation, which is very few," Moonbay said with a shrug but a smile on her face.

Fiona lifted her head off the desk and smiled at the idea. She knew that Van wouldn't have any time this weekend because she knew that he was doing something with Amy because she wouldn't let him out of it. She hated it how there were times that she couldn't even talk to her own friend. "Sure thing," Fiona said before quieting down when the teacher finally turned to look at the class.

* * *

They walked out of their final bell class and to their very bad misfortune the happened to run into Amy. She had her ever present confident smirk on her face. Both of them knew that whatever it was that she was going to say, it wouldn't be anything good.

"Oh look what we have here. Two losers who don't know how to stay out of my way," said Amy as she walked up to them with Van very reluctantly following behind her. He looked like he wanted to get away before he was involved in the conversation.

"Oh god, this is not the way I wanted to start my weekend. Running into little Miss Prissy. I bet daddy gives you everything, no wonder why you are so spoiled," said Moonbay knowing it was going to get on her nerves. She didn't notice how both Van and Fiona tensed up a bit.

Amy either didn't hear the comment or she just chose to ignore it. "Not how I wanted to start mine either. Running into you two freaks," said Amy not getting angry or at least not showing that she was.

"You think we're freaks? The only one I see is you," said Moonbay with a smirk. She noticed a flash of Anger in Amy's eyes as Amy tried to dive at her for the comment only to be held back by Van. Even he was having a bit of trouble keeping her from hurting Moonbay.

She was about ready to strangle Moonbay. Fiona laughed. "You better not push things Moonbay, she looks like she is ready to kill you," Fiona said but she couldn't help the amusement at the situation. She looked towards Van and felt sympathetic towards him. "Why don't we just go Moonbay?" Fiona asked tugging on Moonbay's sleeve.

Moonbay didn't hear Fiona and continued with the taunting. "Hey, Van. I think you need to put your girlfriend back on her leash. She somehow managed to escape," said Moonbay with an even wider grin.

Van didn't say anything but he noticed that Amy was trying to calm down and keep her cool so he reluctantly let go but was about ready to grab a hold again if she was to try again. He hoped that she would keep her cool because she was scary when she was mad.

"Do you honestly think that he would do something like that to me?" asked Amy with a fake pout as she wrapped her arms around Van. She looked at the two of them and was not amused at Moonbay's gagging look. She looked at Fiona who was doing whatever she could to keep out of the argument.

"Yeah, why would I?" asked Van with a smile. He then wrapped his arms around her. Although he didn't show it, he somehow found the little show to be rather entertaining. There were a few times that he felt like laughing but he held it back and put up a strong face.

'That is right. Moonbay doesn't know. So he has to keep up appearances,' thought Fiona. 'Anyone would think it was real,' she thought. She hated when she was forced to do this, just sit back and watched as he played Amy's little game.

"This is just sickening. So I think that I am going to go," said Moonbay as she turned to walk away. "Come on Fiona," said Moonbay as she grabbed Fiona and walked off. "Don't hate Van for that," said Moonbay.

"Why? He has done so many things from what I can see to make a lot of people want to hate him. So why shouldn't I hate him?" Fiona trying to keep their friendship secret. She really wanted to say how good of friends they had become but she knew that she just couldn't do that.

"She has just twisted his mind. He wasn't always like this," said Moonbay with a small sigh as she remembered the old days before Amy. "At one time he was a carefree and loyal friend. Then he went out with Amy and he suddenly changed for the worst," Moonbay said taking a seat on a bench while leaning back trying to relax.

'It is sad how he had to basically give up his friends just because Amy is a spoiled brat. I wonder what it would be like now if he didn't have to do any of this,' Fiona thought with a fake smile that looked happy but was filled with sadness.

* * *

Fiona was laying on her bed listening to music. She was currently reading a magazine when she heard a tapping on her window. "Come in," said Fiona knowing exactly who it was. It had been like this every night since she first met him and they became friends. She trusted him so she had no worries.

Seconds later the window opened and Van crawled through. Stepping around a few scattered boxes left over from their move he sat down in a seat by an empty desk. "Still haven't finished unpacking?" he asked and only received a shoulder shrug from Fiona.

"You put on a good show today. You would have had me fooled if it hadn't been for me knowing the truth," said Fiona as she continued to read the magazine not even looking at Van. She didn't have to, to know that he was smirking at her compliment.

"What can I say? I guess that it just came from a lot of practice. I am a natural actor," said Van with a smirk. He laughed slightly when he saw Fiona roll her eyes from behind the magazine. "That was an argument that I really wished I didn't have to get into. Why can't either of them just avoid a conflict," he groaned sitting down next to her.

"How can you stand her? She is constantly picking fights with people who don't have a will to. Don't you sometimes wish that you can just be free?" asked Fiona setting her magazine down to look at van with her honest beautiful eyes.

"I know she does but I can't do anything. She is nice to me at least. This isn't the life I wanted though. Forced to keep up this charade when I could be living freely. That is how I wanted to live, not forced into a life that is not suited for me," said Van sadly falling back onto the bed.

"I can't say I know how you feel because I don't. If I was to ever have a boyfriend, I would make sure it is someone I would want to stay with," said Fiona giving Van a sympathetic smile while she lightly placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You are lucky that you have the choice. I am not sure what I would do if I wasn't blackmailed though. It all depends on how I feel. I'll admit that I really do care for Amy but I can't say whether or not I can really start loving her with time," Van said trying to think about what would happen in the future. "Whether I wish to stay or not isn't my decision though. For now, I will play along with her father. Maybe at some point, I won't have to worry about any of this," he said trying to put on a smile but failing.

The sudden ringing of a cell phone brought them both out of the moment. Van took a cell phone out of his pocket and turned it on. "Hello," said Van. The sudden rolling of his eyes told Fiona what she already knew. "Hey there," said Van in a calm voice through the phone.

"Where the heck are you Van? I called your parents and they said that you weren't home," Fiona heard through the phone. She groaned because she knew that she wouldn't be able to talk to Van anymore.

"I am with some friends," said Van knowing it wasn't a lie. He hated lying but he knew that this was for the good of so many people. At least he could say this without having to say the full truth. He looked towards Fiona and frowned when he saw that she just went back to reading her magazine without a word.

"Well you have to come to my house. My father wants you to have dinner with us and says that he has something important that he needs to talk to you about," said Amy this time so that Fiona couldn't hear.

Van knew that there was no way out of it. "Fine. I will be there soon," said Van with a sigh that he hoped Amy didn't hear on her end of the phone. He really want to talk with Fiona for a little but he didn't really get a chance to.

Amy was silent for a second before she squealed happily. She was happy to hear him agree to come. He didn't always seem to happy about coming over to her place. "Ok then. I love you. Bye," said Amy cheerfully before her end of the phone went dead because she hung up.

"Yeah," said Van before he closed the cell phone and put it back into his pocket. "Well, be seeing you Fiona," said Van as he stood up and started to walk towards the window. "Good night Fiona," he mumbled before he jumped out the window easily.

"See you," said Fiona as the window opened and he hopped out of it. It was quiet after that and Fiona just went on with reading her magazine. She couldn't hide the fact that she was upset that she couldn't talk to him a little longer. She had come to really like their discussions.

* * *

"What is it Thomas?" asked Fiona the next Monday in lunch when Thomas walked up to her. She looked at him innocently and gave a small smile. She seemed to fail to notice that light blush to jump onto his face when she smiled.

"Um. Well, you see. The thing is," said Thomas not knowing how to come up with the right words. He wanted to ask her out so badly but every time he got the chance to, he would chicken out and lose any opportunities. 'I will ask her this time,' he thought but it didn't help his nerves at all.

Fiona failed to notice how nervous he was because she was looking elsewhere for the moment. She snapped her head back to look at him. "What is it?" Fiona asked again with a smile. It was then that she seemed to notice. "What's wrong Thomas?" she asked kindly looking him in the eye but he just looked away.

Fiona took a look at Van and noticed that he was watching them with an amused expression on his face. Fiona just glared at him playfully. She didn't really know what was so funny about the situation that Van was laughing at her for it.

"Well, I was just wondering," said Thomas but he was cut off when Moonbay came up to them and sat down. He slammed his fist down on the table because he knew another chance was ruined. He just couldn't ask her if there were other people around watching him.

"What a good day. Stupid Amy is not in school today so that we won't have to listen to her constant whining," said Moonbay with a smirk. She looked at Thomas and noticed that he had a grouchy look on his face. "What's up with you? You look like someone just ran over a kitten," she said with a laugh but she noticed that it only seemed to make Thomas's attitude worse.

'Just great,' thought Thomas as he too sat down since he knew that he wasn't going to get to finish his question. "Absolutely nothing," he mumbled setting his head down upon the desk in annoyance. He thought he would finally be able to ask her this time too.

"What is it you wanted to ask Thomas?" Fiona asked once Moonbay had settled down. She saw Thomas look up at her and then lay his head back down on the table. She also noticed that Moonbay seemed to want to hear his reply.

"Never mind," mumbled Thomas sadly. He just couldn't do this is front of Moonbay. He saw Moonbay stare at him with a grin on her face and just knew that she had an idea on what he was trying to do. 'Just great,' he thought angrily in his head.

Lunch came and went and Thomas scurried out of the cafeteria quickly hoping to escape Moonbay's obvious questions. "Hey Thomas, wait up," yelled Moonbay breaking Thomas's hopes. She had just parted with Fiona and spotted him so she thought that she could talk to him.

"What is it Moonbay? I am in a bit of a hurry and don't have much time to talk," asked Thomas still upset that he couldn't get his question off. He was looking around waiting for some chance to escape from Moonbay.

"I have one question I have to ask you," said Moonbay with a grin. "Do you have something for Fiona?" asked Moonbay with her grin still present. She noticed the blush cross his face and didn't even need and answer. She noticed it even though he tried to cover it.

"What?" Thomas asked again not being able to hold back the blush going across his face. He groaned because he knew he wouldn't be able to hide it. "I don't know what you are talking about," Thomas said quickly covering his face in an attempt to hide the blush.

"I guess that is why you are blushing," said Moonbay as her grin widened. "It isn't a bad thing that you have a crush on Fiona. She is single after all," Moonbay said nudging him in the arm.

"I'm not blushing!" said Thomas while turning away from her. He completely forgot to deny that he liked Fiona. He was glad to see that Moonbay didn't notice it. "I am not blushing!" he repeated hoping that he would believe it himself. It wasn't doing him any good because he could feel the heat in his face.

"Don't worry. If you want me to, I won't tell her unless you want me to," said Moonbay in a teasing voice. "I will only leave it to you to tell her. It is your job to do that. Maybe I will help you sometimes," she said with a grin hoping to lure out the truth from Thomas.

"Really?" asked Thomas getting his hopes up a little. He then suddenly noticed what he just said and smacked himself in the head, especially when he saw the grin that quickly spread across Moonbay's face. 'Damn it,' he grumbled to himself.

"I knew it. You just can't deny it," said Moonbay she then gave him a sympathetic look. "Don't worry about it. Like I said before, I will let you tell her but I think you should do it quickly before someone else takes her. If you do then you have nothing to worry about," said Moonbay in a coaxing way.

"When it comes to you, I do have to worry about it," said Thomas seriously narrowing his eyes at Moonbay. 'You don't exactly have the ability to keep a secret very easily. You can only do that if your life depended on it and this will not,' he thought with a sigh while hanging his head.

"Hey! I resent that" yelled Moonbay but Thomas had already walked away. She grumbled to herself before shifting her things in her arms and walking off to her next class. She was glad that she wasn't Fiona at that moment with her next class. She was the lucky one not to get Prozen.

* * *

"Alright class. You need to settle down," said Dr. D at the beginning of his science class. His eyebrow twitched when he saw that no one was paying attention to him. "Be quiet!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. He was glad when he heard nothing after that.

"Since I finally have you quiet, I have some new for all of you. We have another new student. Wow, two in only a few weeks," Dr. D said with a small laugh but no one joined him. "His name is Irvine and he just transferred here. You can come in Irvine," yelled Dr. D out the door.

Irvine walked through the door rubbing his ears as if Dr. D's yell hurt him. "No need to yell old man. I was only outside the door," said Irvine walking through the door. He heard a few chuckles from the class and looked around and let off a small frown.

A bored Moonbay was suddenly jerked up upon seeing him enter the room. She couldn't help but stare but quickly shook it off trying to clear her head of the strange thoughts that suddenly decided to invade her mind.

Dr. D just rolled his eyes at Irvine. "Don't think that I didn't see that," Irvine scolded making the rest of the class start chuckling to themselves while also trying to hold it in so that they didn't get into any trouble.

"Hey I am the teacher! So I am supposed to be the one that is scolding you," Dr. D yelled because of Irvine's response. 'Stupid brat is making me look bad,' he grumbled to himself and put up a tough front despite his old age. "Now listen here young man, I am the teacher here and you are to give me some respect! Now you had better start!" he yelled getting into Irvine's face.

"Is that so? Ok then, I will play your game for now," said Irvine as he walked over and took the nearest open seat, which was behind Moonbay. It happened to be the closest open seat and he was too lazy to look for any other spots.

Moonbay watched him the whole time with a smirk on her face. "Nice one," Moonbay managed to say between her small chuckles at the rather enraged look on Dr. D's face. She loved to see him get all worked up. He just looked so funny when stuff like this happened. Van tended to have the same effect on him as well.

Thomas watched this and this time it was his turn to smirk at her but the glares she sent him upon seeing what he was doing, which got rid of the smirk much quicker than anything that he had ever seen. 'Moonbay could e scary at times,' he thought with a small shiver.

"Alright settle down everyone. Will everyone just settle down and listen to me already?" yelled Dr. D when everyone wouldn't shut up. The room quieted a little. "Now we have to get back to class in case you have forgotten," said Dr. D. many groans were heard all throughout the classroom as Dr. D went on with his extremely complicated speech. For him though it was normal because he was always making things complicated.

"God this is boring already," Irvine muttered as he leaned back in his seat and put his feet up on the desk in front of him. He looked around him and grumbled, "Where is she? I thought she said that she would be here," he said quietly but it was loud enough for Moonbay to hear.

"Where is who? If you are looking for someone, then maybe I will be able to help you. Just tell me her name and I am sure that if she is around, that I will know her," Moonbay said looking at Irvine with a curiosity in her eyes.

Irvine looked at her skeptically at first but then shrugged his shoulders as he leaned back. "Do you by any chance know a woman by the name of Fiona? She said she was going to this school," he said putting his hands in the back of his head.

Moonbay blinked a few times towards Irvine trying to process what she had just heard. 'So he is looking for Fiona?' she asked herself as a smile crossed her mouth. "Fiona you say?" she asked mimicking Irvine.

* * *

"Irvine. I didn't expect you to come so soon," said Fiona said happily as she gave her old friend a big hug. "When did you get in? Is everyone alright?" she asked as the two of them started to walk down the halls forgetting about Moonbay for a second until she yelled at them and caught up.

"How do the two know each other?" asked Moonbay who was standing right besides Fiona. It was clear that the two of them already knew each other but she wanted to know how it was that they knew each other. She hated not knowing what was going on.

"We are old friends. Both of our families were going to move down here but his family had to stay behind for a little while. I guess they were able to come a little sooner than was originally planned," said Fiona with a smile.

"Yeah, It was only a few things so it didn't take as long as we thought it would. You just can't keep me away though Fiona," Irvine said which raised Moonbay's eyebrow a bit. "I think of her more as a sister rather than a friend," Irvine said ruffling Fiona's hair a bit in the process.

"So you are the new student I heard about," Amy's voice said from behind the three of them causing the three of them to turn around and stare at her. Fiona had eyes like she would rather not be there. Moonbay was looking like she wanted to hit Amy. Irvine didn't really seem to know what was going on.

Moonbay quickly turned around and stared at her along with her numerous friends and Van right behind her. "I thought you were out today. I guess you just can't get enough of is," growled Moonbay as she cracked her knuckles while advancing towards Amy but she stopped when her friends got in the way.

"Family business. I came in late," said Amy not even interested in listening to her. She turned to Irvine and looked him over a bit. "I just thought I would give you a warning that it would be smart of you to stay away from losers like them. You hang out with us and nothing bad will ever happen to you here," said Amy with a smile that made Moonbay and Fiona want to throw up.

"Nah. I will hang out with whoever I feel like," said Irvine wrapping his arms around both Fiona and Moonbay's shoulders with a wide grin on his face at the looks that were being given to him. He didn't care what other thought, he would always stick with his friends.

"But they're geeks!" said Amy looking highly appalled at Irvine's quick choice of friends. She thought that she was giving him the best offer in the school and he was turning it down like it was nothing. "Nothing good will come out of hanging out with these losers," she said looking at Fiona and Moonbay with little interest.

"Hey! Shut up. You don't know the first thing about any of us. Irvine won't be coming with you because he is our friend," yelled Fiona since she hated being called a loser over and over again by Amy. She didn't know why Amy hated her so much; all she did was run into her by accident. She really didn't care anymore about what happened..

Van stepped forward with a smirk on his face. He didn't know why but he found it fun to argue with Fiona about stupid things. Both knew nothing they said were true so they turned it into a game to see who would outsmart the other. "Don't tell her to shut up!" said Van standing in front of Amy. He knew it was a lame start but he also knew that Fiona would really get things going.

"I will tell her what I want to tell her! Not that her little dog would know anything about that" Fiona yelled back at him. She kind of felt like laughing at the statement but she managed to hold it in and glared at both Van and Amy.

'Low blow,' Van thought with a frown on his face. He glared at her playfully but to everyone else, it looked like one of real anger. "Oh you're just jealous of all that she has and that you don't. Admit it," Van taunted with a smirk on his face. 'This will definitely be fun,' he thought suppressing the laughter.

Fiona scoffed at the mere idea of that. "Fat chance, what is there to be jealous about. She is nothing but a spoiled brat who has to get everything that she wants. She thinks she is better than others. Heck, she even has her own little servant boy," Fiona said causing a few chuckles from everyone around her, even some of Amy's friends until Amy glared at them and they shut up.

Irvine watched this with amusement. The two of them argued like an old married couple. Neither of them seemed to take what the other one was saying too seriously. He saw something though. He didn't know what it was but it was something that no one else saw.

* * *

School ended and everyone left the school in a rush so that they wouldn't want to stay in that hellhole another second. Since it was only the beginning of the week, some wanted to get away faster since they had to come back the next day.

"Finally we can get out of that place," said Moonbay as she walked with Fiona. She had been in a rather good mood since their argument with Amy and Van, well play argument with Van, but one none-the-less. It had definitely been a fun sight to see for her.

She stretched her arms over her head and let out a loud yawn. "I know," said Fiona as she walked calmly down the street. Her play argument with Van had been rather enjoyable since in the end she ended up getting to better out of him sending Amy into a bit of a fit.

"Listen Fiona. I have to go somewhere else so I will see you later. Great job earlier today, you really showed the two of them who's better," Moonbay said with a laugh before she waved at Fiona while running off in the opposite direction of her home.

"Ok see you," said Fiona as Moonbay ran off farther down the street. Fiona just turned around and sighed as she walked her normal route towards her home. She hadn't seen either Van or Irvine all day since the argument and she wondered what happened to both of them.

"She was in an awful big hurry," a voice suddenly cut in making Fiona jump a little before she turned around and saw Van standing there. He was laughing at how he managed to scare her. He considered it payback since she won their argument earlier that day.

"Don't scare me like that!" said Fiona clutching her chest. She was looking around quickly to make sure that no one was around. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the two of them were completely alone. She wondered where everyone else went.

"Why? Did you think that I was that person that tried to rape you?" asked Van with a chuckle but also with a bit of a serious tone. It was a tough subject and he wished that he didn't bring it up because of the look on Fiona's face.

"No… maybe," said Fiona quietly while looking at the ground trying to rid her mind of the images that were threatening to pop up. She had tried so hard to put it behind her. She was just glad that van was there or something horrible would have happened. She only wanted her future husband to take something like that from her.

"Well I am not. Why don't we just drop the subject because it is one that I would rather not think about," said Van with a laugh. He shoved his hands into his pockets while looking up towards the cloudless sky.

Fiona looked around to see if there was anyone around again. "Where's Amy?" asked Fiona noticing that she wasn't with Van at the moment like she normally was. It was odd not to see the woman hanging all over van like usual.

"She left in a hurry as well. She was mumbling about something important that she had to do. I am not sure what it was because she was in an awfully big rush out of the school. Oh well, more spare time for me," said Van with a smirk while looking at Fiona as she stood in front of him.

"Oh well. At least she won't be around to annoy me. Sometimes I just feel like punching her when she does that," said Fiona as she started to giggle which then turned into a laugh. She had never had thoughts like that before so she found it to be a bit funny. She smiled when she heard Van laughing as well.

Then there was another laugh that startled Van and Fiona. They both turned around expecting to see someone that would blab about them but all they saw was Irvine. They tried to calm down but van felt a little nervous since he didn't know the guy and he already knew of his and Fiona's secret.

"Irvine?" said Fiona a little startled. She laughed nervously at him. She knew she could trust him but it still made her scared that anyone could have been there standing in his place. It could have possibly been one of Amy's friends who could blab on them. She didn't want to think of the consequences for if that happened.

"I knew that there was something strange about the two of you," said Irvine as he laughed a little at the startled two. "Now I see that that little thing that went on in school was a little act," said Irvine as he continued to laugh. He was slightly shocked but also amused at the whole situation.

"Irvine, please you can't tell anyone about this," pleaded Fiona grabbing onto his shirt while shaking him a bit. "You can't mention a word of this to anyone Irvine. This is something very serious," she said looking at him with her beautiful eyes.

"Ok, ok, your secret is safe with me. I knew you had to be hiding something anyways and that was about a friendship," said Irvine patting Fiona on the back. "Besides why would I rat out my friend to queen bitch," said Irvine as he started to laugh again. He was wonder what else was going on between the two of them, or if they really were just friends.

Van looked at Irvine hesitantly. He still didn't know whether to trust him or not, despite the fact that Fiona seemed to know him from somewhere. "Who are you?" asked Van taking a step forwards with a rather serious look upon his face.

Irvine looked at Van and held out a hand towards him. "As you already know, my name is Irvine. I am an old friend of Fiona's from before she moved here," said Irvine shaking Van's hand when his hand was taken in a hand shake.

"Ah I see. Well my name is Van. There is a good reason that we are trying to keep our friendship a secret. I can't just let others know or it will be possible that my mother will be hurt," said Van and went on to explain what had happened. He was glad that someone else knew but he hoped that no one else would have to know after this.

Irvine was really appalled when Van finished explaining the whole reason behind everything. He had serious doubts that Amy was innocent in all of this but had nothing to back it up. "That bastard, how could he do something like that?" Irvine asked angrily with his teeth clenched.

"I know, but I can't do anything. I don't have any thoughts about breaking up with Amy unless she actually gives me some anyways. Oh, and by the way. If you do tell anyone about this I will have to hurt you. No one knows about this but us, not even our friends," said Van with a too serious look on his face as he cracked his knuckles.

"Chill out. I said that I wouldn't, and I won't. I am a man of my word," said Irvine with a grin. "besides, I would much rather eat scorpions than rat out my old friend anyways. She seems happy with this friendship of yours. None of this will ever come out of my mouth," Irvine said pretending to zip his mouth shut.

Van just rolled his eyes at the small display but he couldn't help but laugh a bit. "You better not," said Van eyeing Irvine carefully although something told him that he could trust him. 'He is Fiona's friend after all and she has known him for years. I will just have to trust him,' Van thought before the three of them started to walk again.


	4. Detention

"If miss high and mighty won't shut up then I guess I will have to do it for her," said Moonbay with a grin on her face. She had a piece of food in her hand and looked to be taking aim at Amy with it. There was a look of pure concentration upon her face. She took absolutely no notice of the students around her, only her target.

"What are you doing?" asked Irvine and Fiona as they saw what she was doing. She looked kind of strange just sitting there. They were beginning to wonder if their friend had finally cracked under the pressures of school.

Moonbay didn't even flinch at their intervention. "Shut up. I need to concentrate here," said Moonbay not taking her eyes of her poor, poor victim. She began to chuckle deviously all of a sudden. She would finish what she had started no matter what tried to stop her.

Fiona then looked at what Moonbay was aiming at and couldn't help but give off a little laugh at what she knew was about to happen. 'She isn't actually going to do that is she? Can she is more of the question,' Fiona thought covering her mouth to stop the fit of laughter that was threatening to erupt from within her.

Moonbay let off a grin, then she flicked the piece of food out of her hand and it headed straight towards its target. 'That's it my, just keep it open a little longer,' Moonbay thought with her eyes widening in obvious enjoyment.

Amy took a look over at Fiona, Irvine and Moonbay for a second but took no notice of what they were doing. "I swear their little group of freaks just keeps growing. It is starting to become and infestation," said Amy slightly pissed off.

Van was really starting to get a headache from her constant talking. "I don't know. Irvine seems cool despite the poor lack of judgment that he has for friends," said Van hoping that it would at least shut her up for a few seconds.

Van then looked over and saw them all together and by the looks of it Moonbay seemed to have something up her sleeve. 'Like that's new. She always has something planned at one time or another,' thought Van while rolling his eyes. He decided to keep quiet about it though. Hoping that maybe whatever it was would shut Amy up. 'Does she ever stop talking?' Van asked himself feeling a headache forming.

"I thought that all of my warnings would keep people away from her, but there are a lot of people that actually seem to like that bitch Fiona. They like her even after all that she's done to me!" said an angry Amy pounding his fist down onto the table which caused the occupants to jump up with a start.

She may be his girlfriend but Van was seriously considering shoving something into her mouth to get her to shut up. Luckily for him Moonbay did that job for him before he could get in trouble for doing it himself. He knew he couldn't afford it so he was thankful.

As she kept rambling on and on, a piece of food came in hard and fast and went right into her throat. He knew for a fact that he could hear Moonbay shouting, "Bull's-eye." He couldn't help but release the chuckle low enough so that no one could hear him doing so.

'Thank you,' thought Van when he didn't hear a word out of his girlfriend. She looked like she was choking but her friends were all there helping her out. He got up and gave her a few light pats on the back and it eventually came out.

No sooner than she gotten the food out, she got out of her seat and looked over to see the three friends laughing wildly. "They will pay for that," she growled out as she stormed off in the direction that their table was.

Van groaned because he knew that this was going to happen. 'Better go stop her, or else she may get hurt or end up hurting someone,' thought Van as he got up and followed behind her by a few steps and much slower so he wouldn't get involved too quickly.

Moonbay sat back with a smug look on her face as she watched Amy storm up towards them. "Hey look who has come to grace us with her presence," said Moonbay and started to laugh at the pissed off look on Amy's face. 'Who knew someone could be so red from anger,' she thought highly amused.

Amy's hands came down on the table hard knocking over their lunch. She stared at Moonbay intently with a look of fury in her eyes. "You think that was funny, don't you?" asked a fuming Amy. She had a look like she was ready to explode should the wrong thing be said.

Moonbay too a quick look at Irvine and Fiona with a fake confused look upon her face. "What's funny? What happened" Moonbay asked while trying to act as innocently as she could. It was almost seem convincing if the two of them didn't know that she had actually done it.

If it was possible, Amy only managed to get even angrier. "Admit it! You know exactly what I am talking about!" Amy yelled through clenched teeth. She got straight into Moonbay still confused looking face. She felt disgusted by it but she was too pissed off to even care.

"No I don't. Why don't you tell me," said Moonbay still trying to keep up her little act but in truth she was already about to crack up in laughter. 'What an idiot. Not to mention a major bitch. She doesn't care about anything but herself,' Moonbay thought as she smirked at the fuming girl.

It continued to piss her off that Moonbay was so calm about the situation. "I am warning you that you had better stop before I have to get physical," Amy said just low enough for only the two of them to hear.

Moonbay's eyebrows rose in amusement as she leaned forward and put her chin in her hands. She stared up at Amy with these innocent eyes that would fool anybody that didn't know the truth about what she had actually done. "Is that a threat?" asked Moonbay innocently.

Amy's eyes narrowed even more if it was possible and her hands clenched at her sides. She knew that she couldn't really match up with Moonbay in a fight but that didn't mean that she couldn't pretend like she actually could. "You bet it is. So just stay out of my way," she growled out.

"I would but you won't leave me alone. I was just talking with my friends here when you showed up accusing me of something. You want for us to leave you alone, then leave us alone," Moonbay said turning her own words against her although Moonbay did know that she really was the cause of the problem. Not that she cared. It was too much fun to annoy the woman before her.

She just glared at Moonbay and then at Fiona and then turned around and stormed off. "Come Van," she yelled to him like he was a dog. Knowing he had no other choice he just followed her with his head down knowing her was not going to hear the end of this.

Irvine waited until Amy was out of sight before he gave Moonbay a high-five "Nice shot. She didn't even see it coming until it was too late," said Irvine with a laugh. "The look on her face was priceless," he said laughing wildly.

"I know. All she had to do was keep that big mouth of hers open long enough but it isn't like it isn't open all the time barking orders at everyone. That is all it took though to get it to go right in," said Moonbay triumphantly. Irvine and Moonbay then gave each other a high five for a job well done.

They were so into their happiness that they didn't know that the teacher from hell Prozen had come up to them with a smirking Amy right behind him. "I have been told by Amy that you have been throwing food," said Prozen looking down at them with a penetrating gaze.

'This is just great. There is no getting out of this. He never lets anybody out of anything. Even though he never has any proof,' thought Moonbay squirming a little underneath his intense stare. She was thinking of some way out of this but she knew nothing was possible.

She decided to just play the fool like with Amy pretending that she didn't know anything. It was basically the only thing that she could do. "I am sorry sir but I have no idea what you are talking about," said Moonbay putting back on her innocent voice. His gaze told her that it had failed.

Prozen snarled showing his teeth at Moonbay. "Don't try that pathetic act with me. I know that you did it so don't deny it," Prozen nearly yelled causing everyone in the cafeteria to jump in surprise.

Moonbay really was beginning to panic. He was seriously angry. 'It is no wonder, he favors Amy over everyone. Won't let anything happen to her even if he has to take it out on innocent people,' Moonbay thought angrily. "But sir, I…" said Moonbay but she was cut off.

"I don't want any excuses. All three of you will have detention," said Prozen looking at Irvine, Moonbay, and Fiona. This seriously pissed off all three of the tables occupants because two of them didn't even have any part in Moonbay stunt and they were still being punished.

Fiona was probably most affected by it out of all of them. She had never in her life had a detention before and here she was being given one for just being present. "What? But I didn't do anything," said Fiona desperately.

"You will hold your tongue Miss Lynette. I am well informed that all three of you were involved so quit denying it!" Prozen yelled at the poor young woman. He didn't even care how upset she was by his decision. He was taking great pleasure in doing this to them.

Moonbay stood up quickly and slammed her hands down on the table. She was not going to allow her friends to take the blame for what she did. She saw the look on Fiona's face and just wouldn't allow this to continue.

Prozen turned his stare towards Moonbay but it didn't lose any of the effect that it held when he was yelling at Fiona. "What is it Miss Moonbay?" he asked glaring at her waiting for some sort of lame attempt to get out of her punishment.

Moonbay scowled out him angrily as she clutched the table trying to relieve her anger. "Listen. It was me that did it. So don't punish them. They had nothing to do with it," said Moonbay trying to defend her friends. She would take the blame if it meant that her friends would suffer if she didn't do it.

Prozen pounded his fist down the table which caused Moonbay to sit back in her seat out of fright. "Don't try to get them out of it, because Amy told me that it was all three of you," said Prozen calmly since he was talking about the young woman.

Moonbay then shot a glare at Amy who just smirked in return. "Of course you would believe such bullshit from her," Moonbay yelled suddenly finding courage to stand up to him. "Everyone knows how she is your favorite. So whatever she says must be right for you!" she yelled into his face.

"Do you want two weeks of detention for the three of you?" he yelled at her and it had its desired effect as Moonbay sat down but continued to glare at him with all the hate that she felt towards him.

'How can this guy be so ruthless?' Fiona thought to herself. All of this was really getting to her. 'Where is Van? Why is it that he isn't here, I thought Amy would have dragged him with her to witness her victory,' she thought since she wished for just his presence to help her calm down her shattered nerves.

"You will all have detention right after school and there will be no more complaints or there will be much more than that," said Prozen before turning around and walking out with a happy Amy on his tail. Everyone in the cafeteria was glaring at him out of contempt but he paid them no mind.

Lunch bell was over and Irvine, Moonbay, and Fiona were all walking down the halls to their next class. Neither of them spoke for a while and they walked slowly, Fiona especially since she was stuck with Prozen for the next class. She knew that she would have to keep low to avoid any more trouble with him.

"Why that little. I can't believe she did that to us," said an angry Irvine slamming his fist into his other hand before pounding it against a wall with less force because he didn't want to hurt his hand by doing so. He wanted to keep it in prime shape for Prozen some day.

"You two didn't even do anything and he gave all of us detention," said Moonbay just as angry as Irvine. "Sorry about that Fiona. If I knew it would get you two in trouble then I wouldn't have done it. Especially since you told me that you have never had a detention before," Moonbay said giving Fiona an apologetic look.

"Someone should really do something about that guy. It is obvious that he is a lousy teacher and unfair to every student he has, so why doesn't the school fire him," a fuming Irvine asked letting his anger off on the wall again.

"We can't Amy's father holds a lot of power around here and he makes sure that Prozen stays in this school. That is why he favors Amy. Believe me, if there was something that we could have done then I would have done it a long time ago," Moonbay said rubbing her head where a headache was starting to form.

"That would definitely explain why he hasn't been sacked for all that he has done," said Irvine thinking about all the things that Fiona told him about Prozen. 'He will get it in the end though, I will make sure of that,' Irvine thought cracking his knuckles with a grin on his face.

Luckily for Irvine he didn't have that teacher yet it didn't matter because he still got a detention from him and he was still new here. "I thought that I would at least go a few more weeks before I got a detention. I didn't think I would only be here for a week before I got one," said Irvine a bit upset by this.

"Don't worry about it. He sent me to the office my first day and I didn't do anything, Amy was the one throwing paper at my head in his class that day. I throw one back out of anger and I got in trouble for it," said Fiona just as upset while looking up at the ceiling.

Irvine couldn't help but let his jaw drop at that. "You have to be kidding me. How can there be anyone that cruel? I am adding both Amy and Prozen to my list now," said Irvine which earned him a look from Moonbay. "A list of people that I will be sure to get back at eventually," he said and Moonbay laughed.

"That sounds like a good idea, I should think of doing that as well. It's true what Fiona said though. Fiona told me the next day," said Moonbay remember the event all too clearly. Although when Fiona told her about that day she could tell that Fiona was leaving out a few things. What they were though, Moonbay never found out.

* * *

School ended all too quickly for Fiona. Very reluctantly she walked down the halls towards detention. There were so many other things that she could be doing now, but instead she was stuck there of all places. The last place that at one time she would think she would never be in.

Coming up to the room she slowly opened the door and walked in. The first things she saw was that Irvine and Moonbay were already there. They were having a bit of a conversation and laughing although Fiona really couldn't find out what was so funny about the situation.

They spotted Fiona quickly and she walked over to them. "I was seriously considering just skipping all of this due to the reason I got it for considering that I didn't do it," muttered Irvine turning serious when Fiona approached.

Fiona looked at him curiously because he was never really one to put up with things that didn't even involve him. Usually if he didn't want to do something, then he wouldn't do it. Yet he was still there. "Then why did you come?" Fiona asked taking a seat next to Moonbay.

"I didn't want too bad of an impression in my first few days," said Irvine with his head on the desk in front of him. "Although it is a bit late for that considering that I have a detention already. Now the teachers will think I am a bad person," he muttered leaning back in his seat and putting his feet up on the desk in front of him.

Fiona took a look around the room to find that it was rather empty. Only about six people including the three of them. She took a look at the three other occupants of the room and looked them over. Two of them, she didn't know and didn't feel like getting to know them.

One was a boy with long raven black hair. He didn't really look like he was in the mood to talk to anyone at the moment. He gave her a rather creepy feeling so she didn't pay too much time studying him and turned her attention to the second person.

The other was a girl with short blue hair and an eerie expression on her face. She had a look like she was reading a persons thoughts. She sat next to the first person and they were in a light conversation.

The third person in the room was none other than Van. He tried to ignore the stares that the first guy was giving him but it was grating on his nerves so much that it was easy for everyone to see that he was annoyed at him. It was obvious that the two of them weren't on very friendly terms.

Van felt another pair of eyes on him and he turned to see Irvine and Moonbay there. He guessed Moonbay for what he did but didn't expect to see Irvine and definitely not the young woman that was sitting next to him.

'What is she doing here? I don't think that there is anything that Fiona could possibly do that would earn her a place in detention. What happened earlier was solely Moonbay so what are Irvine and Fiona doing here?' Van asked himself finding that it was getting annoying that he didn't know the answer to this question.

Taking out a piece of paper he wrote a few things on it and then folded it into a paper airplane. He took a look at the other people in the classroom and then he threw it across the room in Fiona direction hoping she would be able to read it and not someone else. He really couldn't afford to let anyone else read it.

In order to make it look like he was just trying to annoy her she turned her head and just let it hit her. What a waste that was though because no one was even looking. She grabbed the note very quickly and turned so that it looked like she was looking out the window but she was really reading the note.

'What are you doing here? It is even possible for you to do something to get in here?' The note made her laugh a bit but she managed to suppress it enough so that no one else could hear it. She then took out a paper and wrote just big enough for only him to see.

Looking around she saw that Irvine and Moonbay were having a discussion and the other two were also talking and not paying attention. Somehow she guessed that Irvine saw and was trying to get Moonbay's attention enough so that Fiona could respond to the note.

'Your girlfriend and Prozen.' Van now knew what was going on. 'I thought it was weird that she was a little too happy after what happened. I didn't know why. I know now though,' thought Van. He gave her a sympathetic nod before turning away. He saw how sad she looked and wished that there was something that he could do. He was her best friend after all.

That was lucky though because Moonbay then turned to Fiona just as she looked away from Van. "Hey Moonbay. Who are those two? They give me this strange creepy feeling," Fiona said pointing towards the two other people that she didn't know. Both of who weren't paying any attention to those around them. Except for the boy glaring at Van.

"Raven is the boy, and Reese is the girl. They are always getting into trouble. There is also a serious rivalry between Raven and Van. They are always competing against each other in hopes that they can prove they are the best. It is usually in sports. Each one of them wins every once in a while but they continue to compete," Moonbay said giving cautious looks at the two men sitting on opposite sides of the classroom.

"I see. I can tell that there was something wrong with them because the guy as been giving glares at Van for a while," Before snapping her mouth shut for almost letting it out. It made her sound as if she was watching the two the whole time. "An enemy of an enemy, does that make him a friend?" she asked trying to hide what she'd said a few moments before.

"Hell No! Raven is probably the most dangerous person in school. Doesn't really give a care what happens to other people as long as he can do whatever he wants. It is one of the few times that I appreciate Prozen. He is the only one who can control the kid," Moonbay said with a shrug.

Fiona couldn't help but laugh nervously chuckling. She made a mentally note to herself to avoid Raven at all costs. She looked towards the two rivals again and jumped at the intense glares that they were giving each other. She was glad when Van just looked away and looked like he was trying to sleep. Doing everything to ignore Raven.

Moonbay too had noticed the intense glares. "By the way, don't mind if a fight breaks out in here between them. It is always normal. I am guessing that is why they are in here today," said Moonbay before turning around and starting a conversation with Irvine.

Van sat up straight in his chair and looked towards the clock. 'When will this stupid detention end?' Van asked himself as he leaned back in his chair. He hated how he was in there a lot. 'Stupid teachers for putting me through this over and over,' he angrily thought pounding his head on the desk.

Van looked towards Fiona and felt bad for her. He knew that she didn't do anything to deserve being stuck in detention. Yet here she was, stuck in detention with people like Raven and Reese. It was too cruel of Prozen to do such a thing to her for doing absolutely nothing.

Van groaned when he thought of his own reason for being here. 'Stupid Raven,' he mentally grumbled. 'I shouldn't even be here. All I did was have a little argument with Raven. Nothing big. Ok so it nearly turned into a fight if a teacher hadn't intervened, but I think they may have overreacted just a little too much,' thought Van with a groan pounding his head on the desk..

He stared at the clock in hope that it was time to get out. No such luck for him. He had to stay there from three to four but at that moment it was on three thirty. He groaned as his head hit the desk again while he tried to get some sleep but he found that it was too hard to.

"I swear these clocks are against me. It should have at least have been and hour and it says we have only been here for thirty minutes," Van said looking up hoping that it was wrong but he found that it wasn't and pouted.

"This would be better if I had someone to talk to but Moonbay is angry at me, Raven and Reese hate me, and I can't talk to Fiona when other people are around,' thought Van before his head fell in defeat. 'This is going to be a long detention,' thought Van as his head fell onto the desk again.

Irvine seemed to already have the idea because it looked like he was already asleep. Van envied him for his ability to sleep so easily. He hadn't had a decent nights sleep in weeks. Amy seemed to like calling at insane hours of the night. It was really starting to get on his and his families nerves.

It wasn't only at night either. She was calling at all hours of the day tying up the phone lines. He had heard his mother complaining about it several times. He was seriously considering unplugging the phones so that he could have his space for a little bit and regain the sleep that he had lost.

'God, I wish it was that easy,' thought Van as he closed his eyes but no sleep seemed to come to him. 'Why won't this stupid detention end?' Van yelled in his head. His hand swiped through his hair in annoyance since he had nothing to do to pass the time. He was usually prepared but this one had kind of taken him by surprise and he didn't have anything to do.

His head snapped up when he heard someone approaching him. He didn't see any sign of Irvine and Moonbay. Fiona wouldn't come over anyways. So he could only take one guess that it was Raven. "Hey Van," came Raven's voice which just confirmed Van's suspicions about who wanted to talk to him.

Van turned his head to the left and saw Raven staring at him with his usual challenging look. "What?" asked Van a little annoyed that he was taken out of his attempted sleep. Although he knew that it would be impossible for him to get any sort of sleep.

"How about a little arm wrestling match?" asked Raven knowing that Van would never turn down a chance to try and beat him. It was almost like an unwritten rule that if you put them in the same room, that there would be some sort of competition between the two of them.

Van smirked because he wanted to beat Raven for putting him in there. He never could deny a challenge from Raven. Heck, it was the same both ways. Neither could challenge the other and have the other one deny the challenge. It was the way they have always been ever since they first met.

Put his arm up to show that he accepted the challenge and Raven did the same. "Alright then. But you are going down. Don't even think that I am going to go easy on you," Van said as the first game started.

"Whoever said that I wanted you to go easy on me. I will be seriously pissed if you didn't. I only want to beat you when you are at your strongest, there is no pride in beating someone who isn't even trying," Raven said as their arms shook with the intense pressure of the two of them trying to get the other's arm down. For them, a match could last a long time even under such intense pressures.

The match had to have lasted a good two to the three minutes with neither of them giving any ground until Van managed to pound Raven's arm against the desk with a victorious look on his face.

Raven growled in annoyance. If there was one thing he hated more than anything, it was losing a match. It was especially worse that he had lost it to his greatest rival. "Grr… one more time!" he yelled getting ready again. Van just smirked and complied.

The matches had been going on for quite a while. The detention was about to end and everyone completely forgot that they were in it by now. "Alright this is just getting old," said Moonbay as she watched the eleventh match going on between the two of them. She would never figure out how the two of them could keep doing such a things when others would give up much earlier on.

So far it was even between them. They were both tied at five wins apiece and every time that they would say that it was the last one the loser would want another round. They just could not accept that they were too evenly matched and they wanted to prove that they were the better of the two of them. They would always be rivals until one really was proven to be the better of the two.

'At this rate it would go on for the rest of the detention. Well, what is left of it anyways,' Moonbay thought but shrugged it off. It isn't that Moonbay cared really. At least it was a little bit of entertainment to go around for the time being.

Moonbay looked towards the clock and was glad to see that there was only a few minutes left in the bell. She was thankful because the match was really starting to get boring. You can only watch one thing so many times before you just lose interest in it completely.

Fiona was watching it, but she just looked like she didn't give a care. Though she was watching it with great interest. It puzzled her how these two can go through what they were doing tight then. To her, it seemed physically impossible for their arms to still be moving.

"Ah come on Raven. You can't let him beat you!" shouted Reese since the match was currently in a stalemate. Neither would budge an inch since they did not want to lose. The force of their strength wasn't what it was in the beginning because they had weakened dramatically since the matches first started. Unfortunately, it was too even for losing strength so they always ended up as strong as the other.

'How can they continue at the rate they are going? Don't their arms ever get tired especially after ten straight matches? Most of which lasted at least a minute or two a piece. How can their arms take it?' Fiona asked herself.

At long last an arm went down and Van was the winner. He was breathing unevenly and his arm was flat on the desk, as if it wasn't going to get up. He looked really tired then like he could fall asleep at any moment.

Raven was in pretty much the same state as Van. "Another round!" challenged Raven but he couldn't even lift his arm anymore. He attempted to lift his arm but got it no more than an inch off the desk before it fell down again. He winced in pain at the attempt.

"You're on!" said Van but his arm was in the exact same position. He was visibly wincing at the struggle to get his arm up. Although they wouldn't admit it, they both knew that the challenge was over. They were incapable of using their good arms. Van was glad though, because he had more wins than Raven.

No matter how hard they tried they couldn't lift their arms. 'It figures that their arms would have to give up eventually,' thought Fiona with a small giggle. She bit her lips to keep from laughing out loud for her poor friend. She knew that something like that would happen to end the challenge. It just surprised her that it took this long for it to happen.

"Well looks like this little bit of entertainment is over with, at least until one of them has full use of their arm again. I personally think that they won't be able to use their arms correctly for a week," Irvine said as he walked back to his seat. No sooner had he sat down then the detention was over.

Everyone jumped out of their seats and pretty much rushed out of the room. Only two of the people didn't rush out of it. They just took their time. The two were Van and Fiona. Fiona just walked slowly and Van was nursing his injured arm. They kept their distance from the others as they walked out of the school and towards a back way home.

Finally they were outside and Moonbay and Irvine were already long-gone so they couldn't see Van and Fiona. Making sure that nobody was around Van walked up next to Fiona. "Hey there Fiona. How are you doing?" Van asked as he put his only uninjured arm on her shoulder.

Fiona looked at Van with her kind eyes and looked at his arm. "How's the arm?" asked Fiona with a slight bit of amusement in her voice. She playfully poked at it while chuckling a bit. She found it amusing that he couldn't even use it after the arm wrestling match was over.

"Ok, I guess. I almost can use it again. Take a look," said Van attempting to use his right arm but it barely even twitched the attempt. Van couldn't help but laughing at the situation a little bit. "Ok, so maybe I overdid it a little too much. At least I won," he said which caused Fiona to laugh even harder.

Fiona calmed down from her laughing fit and looked towards Van. "I don't know how you were able to put that much stress on it for that long," said Fiona as her eyes jumped all over the place to make sure no one was around. Still no one was there and it didn't look like anyone would be coming by anytime soon.

"Raven and I tend to push each other to our limits. We are always at our strongest when we are facing off against each other," Van said shrugging his shoulders. It then brought him back to questions he had for her. "Prozen gave you detention for what happened earlier?" asked Van trying to get the story straight. He was still confused about certain things.

Fiona looked up at the cloudy sky and looked at Van. "Yeah, and I didn't even do anything. That goes for Irvine too," said Fiona a bit saddened. She found the way that Prozen taught completely unfair. "Moonbay even took the blame for what she did and yet he still gave everyone at our table detention," Fiona said with a fake smile.

"Everyone in the school hates him for all that he does to everyone. I am probably one of the ones that hates him the most. This year alone I have already had five detentions given to me by him. Half the time, I am not even involved in the mess. The other times, it is because of arguments with Raven. Prozen loves my girlfriend yet he hates me more than anything," said Van angrily as he leaned against a phone pole.

Fiona laughed a little. "Even though I have him as a teacher, he has never shown to be very good at the profession. He only seems to teach the basics as if that is all that he knows. I am doing my own learning because of that," Fiona said with a smile. Doing it on her own was probably the only way she would learn things that she didn't already know.

Van knew perfectly well that Fiona was right about that. Prozen was a worthless teacher but they had to keep him around because of Amy's father. "I wish they would just fire him so we wouldn't have to listen to him anymore or have any of his pointless detentions," said Van laughing with Fiona.

The two of them came to where they had to separate. Fiona was about to turn and go home but was suddenly grabbed by her arm because of Van. "Don't think so Fiona. My mother wants you to come over for dinner," Van said when she gave him a bit of a confused look.

"I wish that I could but I am already late in getting home and I am sure that my mother is a bit angry at me. So I had better get going," she said pulling her arm free and continued walking only to get pulled back towards Van again. "Van?" Fiona asked wondering why he kept doing this.

"No need to worry about that Fiona. I already called and asked your mother this morning. She said it was ok, so you are coming with me. Although it would be best if we went separately," he said with a smile before he walked in a direction that he didn't normally take towards his house.

Fiona knew what he was talking about. The way they were walking before was a really empty street with no houses on it. Now they were in a crowded neighborhood meaning they couldn't be seen. Fiona smiled and walked in the direction of his house by herself knowing she would meet Van there by the time that she got there.


	5. fun in the sun

Moonbay stared at Fiona as if she were expecting something. "So are you up for it?" Moonbay asked cheerfully. She was currently at Fiona's house and they were talking about what they were going to be doing for their spring break. Moonbay had a plan to head to the beach and asked Fiona if she wanted to come.

Fiona looked towards Moonbay a little unsure of what her answer was going to be. "I don't know. There's a lot of work that I have to do. I don't think that I will have the time for it," Fiona said in deep thought. She had to admit that it was very tempting though.

Moonbay groaned and slammed her down upon the table that her and Fiona were sitting at. "Enough with school work! We have a week off from it. So I'm going to make sure that you actually do something else," Moonbay said trying to leave it with no room for arguments from the younger lady.

Fiona opened her mouth but no words came out. She just didn't have the time and she wanted Moonbay to know that. It didn't look like Moonbay really cared though. she had a smile on like Fiona had already accepted it. "But…" Fiona said but Moonbay cut her off.

"No, you're going to come with me. I'm offering to take you on a vacation. Which might I add we definitely need we need it to get away from people like Amy and Prozen. It is spring break. A trip to the beach would be a good way to let off some of the stress that we have been having," Moonbay said getting a dreamy look in her eyes. "Not to mention all the cute guys in swimsuits," she said grinning mischievously.

Fiona just sighed in defeat. 'Moonbay does make a good point I guess. I do need a break from all this stress of school. It hasn't exactly been easy on me since I first moved here,' Fiona thought sighing again. "I guess," Fiona said finally giving in to her friend's wishes. She figured that there was no point arguing with Moonbay anyways.

Moonbay grinned in victory and cheered aloud. "Good, because we are leaving tomorrow. Irvine already said that he would come. So you won't have to ask him," Moonbay said grinning before running off without another word.

"What? Tomorrow? You beg me to go and then you just leave me to pack in one night?" Fiona asked very frustrated as she ran after her friend. "You're going to help me then!" she yelled at her but frowned since Moonbay was already long gone.

Fiona frowned and walked to her room ready for a long night of packing. 'Why do I have a bad feeling about all of this,' thought Fiona knowing with her luck that something was going to ruin this.

She stopped when she came to her mother's door. She knocked on the door and was greeted with a, "Come in." Fiona walked into her room and her mother looked up with a small smile. "Is there something that you needed Fiona?" she asked setting down a book she was reading and taking off her pair of reading glasses.

"I'm sorry if this is under short notice but Moonbay kind of invited me to go on a vacation with her to the beach. Is it ok if I go, they're leaving tomorrow," Fiona explained completely forgetting that she forgot to ask for her mother's permission before she accepted.

"I don't see why not. It's good you made such good friends. I wish I had a little more notice about it though," she said with a frown at only being told about it at the last minute. "Do you have everything that you'd need for it?" she asked curiously.

"Moonbay only asked me a few minutes ago so I could only tell you right now. As for what I need. I'm pretty sure that I have everything. I'll only have to spend the entire night packing it all," Fiona said before turning towards the door. "Good night mother and if I don't see you tomorrow, I'll see you later in the week," she said before walking out the door.

* * *

"Alright. It's time that you woke up Fiona. We have a couple of hours of driving ahead of us so you have to get up so we can get an early start," Moonbay said happily as she walked into Fiona's room very early in the morning. She frowned when she saw that Fiona was still fast asleep in her bed.

Fiona just put the pillow over her head. "How did you get in here?" Fiona asked from under the pillow. She was so tired at that moment because she had been packing her bag well into the morning before she was able to get any sleep. She would say that she only had about three or four hours of sleep by now.

Moonbay looked around spotting Fiona's luggage in the corner glad that she was at least already packed. "Your mother let me in. now it is time that we got going," Moonbay said as she pulled on Fiona's arm.

Fiona wouldn't even budge from her spot no matter how hard Moonbay pulled. "Give me a few more hours of sleep. Your abrupt invitation barely allowed me any sleep last night since I was up all night packing. Come back in a few hours and I'll be ready by then," she said burying her face into the pillow again resisting Moonbay's pulling.

Irvine came into the room looking a little aggravated because he expecting Fiona to be ready so they could leave quickly. "Hey Moonbay what is taking so long?" Irvine asked looking towards the still sleeping Fiona. He couldn't blame her either. Even he was still too tired. None of them were morning people.

Moonbay sighed as she backed away from Fiona. "She won't get up. Even I can't seem to move her from that spot. We can't leave until she decides to get up. What're we going to do?" Moonbay asked shaking her head as she sat down in a seat that was at a small desk.

Irvine looked towards Fiona again and studied her. He figured he knew the quickest way to get them on the road/ "Then let me try," Irvine said walking into the room. He walked up to Fiona's bed and looked down at her for a second. With great ease he picked up Fiona and threw her over his shoulder and walked out the door. "Let go, best to beat the traffic," he said walking to the car.

Irvine had turned sixteen a few months ago. He was older than most of the people in their grade but only because he started school a little later than most would. He got his license a few weeks before and intended to use it to it's full advantage on their spring break.

Moonbay followed behind but not before grabbing the few things that Fiona was bringing along with them. It only really consisted of two small suitcases but each was rather heavy meaning that Fiona packed them to the bursting point. 'Glad we don't have to do that for her as well.

Moonbay just threw the suitcases into the trunk of the car and jumped into the passenger seat with a grin despite her tired disposition. "It's time to have some fun!" she Moonbay happily as she leaned her head back and soon found herself falling to sleep much like Fiona was doing already.

Irvine put Fiona in the back seat. She was still asleep when he did this and he couldn't blame her. The sun was just rising at that moment. Under normal circumstances he would also still be asleep and not want to wake up like Fiona. 'Wish I had the luxury of being able to sleep as well. Maybe we should have just taken a bus,' he thought getting into the drivers seat.

Moonbay's eyes opened and she looked towards Irvine and then back at Fiona. "I'm surprised she didn't wake up when you carried her out to the car," she mumbled as the car started and they pulled out of the driveway. "Any idea how long this is going to take?" she asked tiredly.

"A few hours. You might as well get some sleep as well," he said with a yawn. "If you two aren't awake when we reach there then I will wake you two up," he said but kept his eyes focused on the road ahead of him. He saw Moonbay just nod before she closed her eyes again and fell asleep.

* * *

"Ah. There is nothing like the fresh air to get this day going," Moonbay said as she stuck her head out the window of the car but just barely in hopes of avoiding getting her head knocked off.

Fiona just sat in the back of the car and stared out of the window. The scenery was beautiful but she wasn't interested because she was trying to avoid herself from strangling Moonbay who happened to be singing in the front seat like she had been for the past hour.

It had to be at least four hours since they started to drive and an hour since Fiona had woken up to Moonbay's rather loud singing. "Are we there yet?" Fiona asked staring at the roof of the car with the utmost interest, or at least looking like she was.

"For the fiftieth time, no," said an annoyed Irvine because Fiona kept asking that question ever since she woke up. The first few times didn't bother him because they were more spaced apart but now she was asking the same question ever few minutes or seconds at times.

"How bout now?" This time Moonbay asked. She was grinning her head off as she saw Irvine visibly flinch at the question. She knew Fiona was just bored so she asked the question but Moonbay was intentionally trying to annoy Irvine to his maximum extent because she knew he couldn't fight back except with words.

Irvine's hands gripped at the steering wheel so tight that they started to turn white. "No," said an aggravated Irvine. He swore that if they didn't stop he would strangle them no matter what the consequences for his actions would be. At least he would die happy knowing he got his revenge.

Fiona smiled slightly before she once again asked. "What about now?" Fiona asked knowing it was getting on his nerves. They were only trying to have fun with Irvine. She just hoped he wouldn't put their life in danger by physically getting back at them for annoying him like this.

"NO!" yelled Irvine having enough of the questions. "We'll be there in about an hour. If either of you ask me one more time. I swear you will be walking the rest of the way!" he yelled breathing hard before taking a deep breath and turning his eyes back to the road.

After that, it was completely silent until Moonbay started her singing. Now it was Fiona's turn to be annoyed with her friend. Not to mention Irvine's patience was running very thin and he just wanted to shoot himself.

* * *

"Took us long enough but we are finally here," Moonbay said as she got out of the car and stretched out. All that she could see for miles down was beautiful sand and clear blue water. It was all that she could dream about and more. 'This is going to be great!' she thought excitedly.

Irvine stepped out of the car wearing only his swim shorts and an unbuttoned shirt. He sighed in relief and also looked towards the beach. "I thought that I was going to go insane with all of your singing," Irvine said almost automatically dodging the bottle of suntan lotion Moonbay threw at his head.

Fiona was already in her bathing suit because they had already stopped at a place to get changed. It was a pink one-piece bathing suit. It was at the moment covered by a large white shirt. She just remained quiet as her two friends teased each other over and over. She thought it was kind of cute what was going on between them.

They looked over the beach that was in front of them and noticed that there weren't too many people there. At that distance they could only see the people and not who they were. Not like they really cared, they wouldn't see most of the people again anyways.

The day was absolutely beautiful too. It was warm but not too hot and there wasn't a cloud in the sky that could ruin their day. Moonbay couldn't help but feel proud of herself for choosing such a perfect place where they could spend their spring break.

"Today is going to be perfect. Just the good old fashion R&R," Moonbay said as she walked down some steps that led down to the beach. She just stood there for a second and admired the view that was before her. Then she started to walk down the beach to find the perfect place for them to set up for the day.

Moonbay started to walk again but came to a stop when a voice spoke aloud to all three of them. "Oh great! There is trash on this beach now!" the voice said from off to the side. It sounded arrogant and annoyed at their sudden presence

Moonbay happened to be very unfortunately enough to know that voice like the back of her hand. You can't get tortured by the person and not recognize them easily. "Great. What are you doing here Amy?" an annoyed Moonbay asked because she thought that this little trip would help her to get away from Amy not bring her to her.

"I'm taking a vacation. Now beat it before you end up ruining it for me and Van by being here," Amy said with a look of repulsion in her voice. She readjusted the mirror in front of her trying to get maximum sunlight.

Moonbay growled and turned away from Amy while crossing her arms in defiance. "Forget it! We'll stay here if we like!" Moonbay said knowing that this will annoy Amy and give Moonbay the satisfaction of knowing this.

She was definitely annoyed at them and even more annoyed when Fiona walked up next to Moonbay. "Man, this day just seems to be getting worse and worse. Actually planning on swimming with the shirt on. Not that I can blame you, since you have so little to offer under it," Amy said with a smirk as she laid back in her armchair and tried to get as much sunlight as she could.

Moonbay had to grab Fiona to stop her from attacking Amy at the moment. It surprised Moonbay since she actually had a bit of trouble. 'For someone so nice, she's strong when all of her buttons are pushed at once,' Moonbay thought as she struggled with the blonde haired woman. "Calm down Fiona, she's only trying to piss you off," Moonbay said feeling glad when Fiona finally calmed down.

"Move out of the way. You're blocking my light," Amy hating being in their shadows because, to her, it was stopping her from perfecting her already beautiful skin. "I said move! Are you trying to ruin me?" Amy growled again adjusting the sunglasses on her face.

Moonbay just grinned at what she said. "It wouldn't matter to us is we ruined you're wonderful complexion," Moonbay said with a great deal of sarcasm placed into her words. "We're going anyway because we don't want to be around a bitch like you," Moonbay said as her, Fiona, and Irvine walked to a different area of the beach.

Along the way Van came running by. He took a quick look at Fiona and she did the same. Van had a look of curiosity on his face seeing them there. He wasn't even aware that Fiona was going to leave the house. Yet he finds her here of all places. 'Small world,' he thought with a smirk before he turned and started to run back towards Amy. He was kind of happy they were there. 'Things were getting boring anyways,' he thought with a chuckle.

Moonbay just grunted as she found a good place a decent distance from Van and Amy. She roughly set a chair down and sat in it angrily. "We can't let this get us down. We came here to have fun and that is what we are going to do," Moonbay said trying to regain her composure from the earlier encounter.

Irvine took a look at Moonbay and saw how angry she was. He found it pretty amusing even if he didn't mean to come to the same place as Amy. He just knew this as a very good beach in driving distance. "Small world, if we found both of them here," Irvine said a she did the same thing as Moonbay.

"Oh well. Maybe we can make the best of it and make her little vacation hell," Moonbay said with a laugh. She rubbed her hands together planning all the great things they could do. Swim, play volleyball, and tease Amy until she goes crazy. 'This is going to be good.'

* * *

For the first hour or so they were just relaxing and talking rather than doing anything. Despite how little they were doing, it was still very fun in Fiona's opinion. She was especially glad that Amy decided to be civil for once and kept to her own area. She hadn't talked to them once since their first encounter. Fiona had a guess that Van was the cause of this.

Fiona looked around and saw that despite this being a lovely beach, that there weren't that many people there to enjoy it. "Um, Moonbay. Why exactly was it this beach that we came to?" Fiona asked still looking around curiously.

"It was the closest one to us. So I guess queen bitch had the same idea," Moonbay said with a casual shrug of her shoulders while relaxing in her chair. Moonbay noticed something out of the corner of her eyes. "Looks like it isn't going to be as peaceful anymore," Moonbay said tilting her sunglasses down while looking a short distance down the beach.

"Why?" Fiona asked. Moonbay just pointed in one direction. Fiona looked over and saw Raven and Reese walking down the beach towards them. Both of them looking as dark as usual. It sent some shivers down Fiona's spine just by looking at them. "This isn't good," Fiona muttered as she saw the Van and Raven notice each other.

"Alright. I'm starting bets for when they start having a swimming race," Irvine joked around with a small chuckle. He completed it by pulling out his wallet from his normal pants pocket.

There was a gleam in Moonbay's eyes at the mention of betting. You could never mention bet with her without going through with it. The woman was obsessed with money and would go through anything just to get it. "I bet five bucks on Raven," Moonbay said for the heck of it.

Irvine just shook his head. He knew she only bet on Raven because she was pissed at Van because of what he did to her when he started to go out with Amy. It wasn't exactly something he could control. Irvine took this as an opportunity. "Well I bet five on Van," Irvine said figuring it to be easy money.

No sooner had they said this then arguing could from the two rivals. Almost everyone on the beach could hear them going at it. Yelling stuff like "What the hell are you doing here?" and, "Just go home because you're not wanted here!" coming from the two of them.

"Can't they give it a break? This is supposed to be a relaxing vacation. I don't want it ruined because of it," Fiona said as she laid back on a beach towel to relax. Although her eyes did keep going towards the intense argument coming from her best friend and his ultimate rival.

The sound of splashing could be heard and Fiona looked to see Van and Raven in the water racing each other like Moonbay had predicted. 'This must go on all the time if Moonbay can so easily predict what the two of them decide to do first. Then again, this is a beach. But there are other things to do as well,' Fiona thought before turning away from the scene again.

Irvine watched the race in excitement waving his five dollars in the air. "Come on I have five bucks betted on you Van!" Irvine yelled growing a bit aggravated that the race was completely tied at that moment meaning that it was going to be too close of a race for his liking.

"Down to the wire, they're neck and neck. Who is going to win," Moonbay commentated the race. "And their… tied?" said a confused Moonbay. She sagged and hung her head knowing that there'd be no money going to her.

Irvine looked curiously from his money to Moonbay's money. "So who won that bet exactly?" Irvine asked as he watched the two rivals walk to different areas and not even look at each other. "I guess because of you posture, that I won the bet," he said with a triumphant grin.

Moonbay looked towards him with a glare. "No you idiot! You're not getting my money for that! It was a tie! I thought that I was going to win too," Moonbay said with a pout as she stuffed her money back to where she got it from.

Irvine grinned finding it rather cute how she looked when she gets mad. "Yeah right. I would have been the one to win the bet," Irvine said as he stuffed the money back into his wallet. He then looked up at Moonbay who was giving him a challenging glare. He enjoyed a good challenge and Moonbay always gave the best challenge to him.

"Fat chance! Van was behind for most of the race. He just caught up at the last moment. So it was pure luck for you that the race turned out the way that it did," Moonbay said placing her hands on her hip with a smirk on her face.

"Were you even watching the same race as me?" Irvine asked as he stood up and started to head to the water. "Van was clearly going to win until Raven caught up at the last second," he said smirking as she came with him. They argued like this for a while as they headed towards the water.

Fiona just laid there and watched as Van walked back to his girlfriend. It made Fiona disgusted to see her throw herself all over Van and he didn't really seem too bothered by it. She turned back around and just laid there trying to get a tan.

* * *

The sun glared down upon the three teenagers but none seemed to mind the heat that it created. "Ah, this is definitely the good life," Moonbay said while picking up a drink she had Irvine buy for her. She liked to say it was a real pina colada but in reality it was just a non-alcoholic one.

Everyone watched as a volleyball game went on between Raven and Reese, against Van and Amy. Fiona had heard that Amy was supposed to be good at this sport but that wasn't the way it looked as her and Van were getting pounded into the ground. Van did good but continued to make mistake after mistake.

The ball was hit over the net by Van and Raven came up fast and spiked the ball back towards Amy who didn't catch it and was smacked right in the face. Irvine and Moonbay were laughing their heads off at this. Amy got up off the ground angrily and just stormed away from the game.

Moonbay had spilled her drink as she fell to the ground with Irvine and both of them were rolling around laughing their heads off. "That was just too good," Moonbay said as she wiped a tear away from her eye that formed because of how much she was laughing.

This unfortunately caused an end to the game due to lack of players. They watched as Amy took her usual seat that she had all day. Van couldn't help but groan and follow after her. He really wanted to win the game to. Then again, he really loved beating Raven more than anything, but he didn't get that privilege this time.

Van walked up to her and they started a conversation. She seemed to be yelling at him for something. 'Probably blaming him for the loss. She never took any defeats upon herself. She always had to blame someone else when she lost,' Fiona thought as she laid on her stomach and just watched the argument.

Van seemed to get aggravated by it and just walked off before she could say anymore. Amy didn't seem worried too much and she just sat back down and from what Moonbay and Irvine could see closed her eyes for a short nap.

Moonbay watched her for a second with a small smirk. "If she falls asleep out here, then she's going to have a killer sunburn later," she said laughing at the thought. It made it funnier to think how much makeup Amy would put on to cover it up. 'She has enough as it is. She wouldn't be able to stand under its weight.'

Irvine suddenly had a plan. "A-ha!" he yelled catching the attention of the two other ladies. "Hey Moonbay. I have an idea. Are you up for it?" Irvine asked with a look that told them that he was trying to hold back his laughter. He knew Moonbay would be up for it but he figured that he better tell her first.

"What is it?" Moonbay asked very interested in what it was. Irvine leaned over and whispered something in Moonbay's ears. Upon hearing it Moonbay burst out in laughter. "Oh that's good! Count me in!" she said standing up and dusted the sand off herself from when she was rolling around in the sand.

Moonbay walked close to Irvine and he leaned over and whispered more in her ear. He then pulled away with a smirk. "We need to work quickly though. Who knows when she'll wake up or when Van will come back. So hurry up!" he said before rushing off to grab some things from his car.

Moonbay went in a separate direction by going off in the direction Van was in as Irvine came back with what looked like a small shovel. Fiona paid attention as Moonbay led Van off more by force than by anything else, and Irvine started to dig a hole in the ground.

About thirty minutes later, Irvine had a decent sized hole in the sand. It was one that appeared that someone could easily stand in but didn't have much room to move around it. He climbed out of it carefully and waited for Moonbay to come back from her job.

Moonbay came back about five minutes after that and joined Irvine. "He's out of the way for now but I can't say for how long. Now its time for us to work on our poor victim," Moonbay said happily as she looked towards Amy. "Luckily she's still sleeping," Moonbay said with a laugh.

The two of them stealthily walked up to Amy. After she didn't even talk to them they knew that she really was sleeping. They waved their hand in front of her face and poked her lightly a few times for reassurance. They knew it might wake her up but they figured that carrying her had a better chance so they wanted to test what would happen first.

Moonbay grinned at Irvine as they very carefully picked her up so as not to wake her up and ruin their plan and dragged her towards the hole. They carefully placed her in. The sides appeared to hold her up enough as they poured the sand back into the hole covering all but her head.

"There, we're finished," Moonbay said as she dusted the sand off of her hands. "Too bad we couldn't bury her completely but I'm not going to go to prison for murder or worse… death. Her father would bring back the guillotine if something happened to his precious little brat," she said as they walked back to their things.

"I wonder what her response will be when she wake up," Irvine wondered as he grabbed a camera from a small backpack that they brought with them. They both walked over to her again and just admired their work for a second. They were surprised that she had yet to wake up after all they did.

"I don't know but I have to get a picture of this. You know, she almost looks like her head's been cut off like this. It would save many people a lot of trouble if that was true," Moonbay said as she took the camera directly out of Irvine's hands and took a picture of Amy's head since she was buried in the sand.

The clicking of the camera made Amy wake up. "She wakes up to a camera click but not us burying her in a hole," Irvine said with a laugh which Moonbay happily joined in with him. "Three, two, one," Irvine counted down to what he knew was about to come. He had the camera ready as well.

"Hey what's going on? I can't move,' said Amy not know the position that she was in. She opened her eyes fully and noticed that the sand was right under her head but there was no body. She then realized that she was buried in the sand. She looked up to see a grinning Irvine and Moonbay. "Hey you'd better get me out of here this instant!" commanded Amy with a scowl on her face.

"Or you'll do what? You're not exactly in any sort of position to make demands towards us right now. Anyways, there's no need to lose your head over it," Moonbay asked speaking of the fact that she looked almost decapitated with how they placed her in the hole.

Amy looked around frantically trying to find some sort of escape but she didn't seem to find anyone who didn't care to notice or just didn't care enough to help her out of the hole. She couldn't even see her boyfriend from the angles she actually could see. "Van!" yelled Amy struggling as hard as she could.

"You won't be getting any help from him because he's off somewhere far away from here. All I did was ask him to find something for me. He is too nice at times," Moonbay said with a smirk before her and Irvine walked off. They walked backwards because they just enjoyed watching her be helpless with no one to help her out this time. Usually it's the other was around, she has everyone help her.

When Amy saw them turn around no longer even watching her, she grew into a bit of a frenzy. "Hey! Get back here. Wait till I tell my daddy!" Amy yelled but it had no effect as they just waved goodbye at her as they sat back down in the seats and enjoyed what was left of the day.

"Do you hear something Irvine?" Moonbay asked grabbing another drink that Fiona probably picked up while they were doing their job. It was too bad. She'd disappeared as well and wouldn't get to see her worst enemy helpless.

"This can't get any worse," Amy said angrily. She spoke to soon as a crab walked right in front of her face snapping its pincers. She stared at it for a second before doing the only thing that came to mind, she screamed.

* * *

Van was waiting in line at a stand. He was hungry and they happened to be selling appetizing watermelons. Unfortunately, the line was pretty long and he was at the very back of the line. He almost didn't notice Fiona come until she spoke to him.

"Hey there Van," Fiona said getting in the line right behind Van. She figured it would be a good time to talk to him since they couldn't be seen by Amy from her hole and there didn't appear to be anyone they knew. Raven and Reese kept to themselves so she figured that she didn't have to worry about either of them.

"Oh, hey Fiona," Van said as he turned around finally noticing that she was there. It made him kind f nervous because he knew that Amy was nearby. "You do know that she's nearby, don't you?" Van asked nervously as he looked from side to side thinking that she'd pop up at any moment to find the two of them together.

Fiona just shrugged since she knew that it wasn't possible for her to get out of that hold for a long time. "Last I saw Irvine and Moonbay were burying her in the sand while she was sleeping. Don't think she'll be getting out for a while," Fiona said with a giggle remembering how she looked as Fiona left the group.

Van had to try and stop the urge to laugh. "Oh well. It might give her some time to cool of a little. She is way too short tempered at times," Van said looking back at the stand. "She tried to blame me for us losing the game when she's the one that kept making all the mistakes. I thought she was supposed to be good at that game," Van said as the line finally seemed to start moving a little.

Fiona looked at the stand but couldn't make out what they were selling from her current position. "So what're they selling that would want to make you wait in such a long line for it?" she asked standing right beside Van.

Van stomached growled a little and he laughed in embarrassment. "I was getting a bit hungry so I thought that I'd pick up something to eat. The were selling watermelons here and I thought it sounded very appetizing," he said rubbing his stomach which kept growling from lack of food.

"That does sound awfully appetizing," she said as they finally made it to the front of the line and got their food before walking to a nearby bench. They both sat down and ate their watermelon quietly before Fiona spoke again. "I didn't think that I would see you here," Fiona said spitting out some seeds that made its way into her mouth.

Van was silent for a second before he turned to look at Fiona. "I was planning to just come alone to get away from everything and relax but she just decided to tag along with me before I could say anything. I would just have preferred to be alone. Because of her tagging along, I won't be able to stay here as long as I'd hoped to," Van said placing down his watermelon and stared towards the sky.

"How long are you planning on staying?" Fiona asked picking up the note of disappointment in his voice. She's offer to let him stay with her, Moonbay, and Irvine but that wouldn't go too smoothly with Moonbay.

"Just until the end of the day. I wish I could stay longer but I don't have the money for a hotel. I had enough money to stay for a day or two but it takes too much money with Amy and I don't have enough money anymore. Amy would probably pay for it but most likely she would only want one room for the both of us," Van said with a nervous laugh.

"I really could have gone without knowing that," Fiona said in a disgusted voice. She had disturbing images in her head that she immediately wanted out. "I had better get back before they start thinking things since both you and I are gone," Fiona said as she stood up and ran ahead of him.

Van stood up and he watched her running off. He couldn't seem to help it as his eyes wondered a bit at her in her bathing suit. He quickly shook his head in frustration scolding himself for looking at his friend like that. "Don't think of stuff like that," he told himself.

* * *

Moonbay was lying down trying to get a tan. Irvine said he could get it since he skin was already very naturally tan as it was but she just ignored him. She looked up as Fiona came walking back to the two of them carrying two extra plates that she got just for the two of them. "Oh goody. You're too kind Fiona," Moonbay said grabbing on of the plates and Irvine did the same.

Fiona took a seat on the spare chair and then a thought came to her head that had to do with what her and Van had talked about in their short talk. "So how long are we staying here Moonbay?" Fiona asked when she was sure that she actually had Moonbay's attention instead of Moonbay's attention being on the watermelon.

"The entire week if we can. I've saved up a lot of money from a job I have been doing for the past few months. I've been preparing for this before you came but it is a lot more fun to have both of you with me," Moonbay said proudly spitting out several of her seeds at once. "By the way, like our work of art?" Moonbay asked pointing off to the side.

Fiona looked over and saw Amy struggling and failing to get out of the sand. She also noticed a huge red mark on her cheek. "What happened to her?" Fiona asked as her face scrunched up a bit noticing how painful the large red welt looked. She was glad that she wasn't the one that had it.

Irvine and Moonbay looked at each other for a second before saying in unison, "Crab." It freaked Fiona out how they could say it so calmly but when she looked closer, she could see that they were doing everything in the power to stop from laughing.

"That has got to be painful" Fiona said rubbing her own cheek as if she could feel the pain just by looking at the large red welt covering up most of her cheek. It looked like she was blushing but Fiona knew better since Amy wasn't modest enough to blush at anything. Something that got annoying with how confident she was with just about anything. "So what are we going to be doing this week?" Fiona asked trying to drop the subject because she didn't want Amy to ruin her break.

Moonbay just grinned as she looked towards Fiona. "All sorts of things. Going to the beach like today. I've always wanted to go scuba diving, and maybe a few other things," Moonbay said before turning around and started working on her back. "For right now, I just want to try and get a tan," she muttered with a content sigh.

Fiona looked a little confused as she looked at Moonbay's skin. "But you're skins already naturally tanned, why would you need to get another one?" Fiona asked which cause Irvine to break out in laughter since he asked the exact same question and also caused Moonbay to give Fiona a grunt in annoyance at her question.

Moonbay turned towards Fiona with a playful glare. "Hey! A beautiful woman like me can get a better one if I want to! So don't get on my case about it!" Moonbay said before turning and ignoring Fiona in case she continues to ask the question. She growled when she heard Irvine still chuckling and he immediately shut up.

Fiona figured it would be best to just drop the question before she gets on Moonbay's nerves enough for Moonbay to just leave her here. "About all our plans, do you have enough money to do that?" Fiona asked a little skeptically eyeing Moonbay carefully. She didn't want to get left here because they spent all the money and they didn't have enough for the gas to get home.

"Sure. Like I said I got a lot from a job I have been doing, some from my parents. I have enough to let us do a good amount of things while we are here, and still have a bit left over for supplies on the way home," Moonbay said happily and almost in a way that made it as if she was able to read Fiona's worries.

Fiona then felt a little more assured that they wouldn't be stuck in the middle of nowhere on the way home so she just started to walk towards the water. They did come to a beach so she figured that it would be good if she actually got into the water while they were there. "Then I guess this is going to be a fun week," Fiona said with a smile as she dived in ignoring the salty taste that came to her mouth in the process.

Meanwhile, Amy just remained there glaring at the three friends. She glared at Fiona the most as she playfully splashed around in the water. It was definitely getting a bit of attention from the many people their age. 'What do they see in her?' she asked herself bitterly. "Will someone please get me out of here!" she hated being ignored and everyone happened to be doing that. It made it worse that all the attention was on Fiona. "Where are you Van?" she yelled out in frustration.


	6. storm

"You do know Moonbay that if you are going to plan a trip that it would be best to check what the weather would be like first,' said Irvine at a window to their hotel as he watched the heavy winds and rain come down hard on the streets below. "So it kind of skipped my mind because of how happy I was to actually be having this vacation," said Moonbay who was sitting on one of the few beds in the room staring past Irvine and out of the window. "Well your little mistake is making us waste a perfectly good day stuck in the hotel room, and Fiona is still out there somewhere," said an annoyed Irvine. "I am sure that she has found some place to stay at until the storm clears up," said Moonbay as she laid back onto the bed. "This was supposed to be relaxing, not boring by being stuck in here," muttered Irvine. "To make it worse we are also stuck her with queen bitch," he said. "I heard that she wasn't staying. So why is she still here?" asked Moonbay. "I don't know. That is more of something that you should either ask her or Van. How am I supposed to know why she is still here," said Irvine a little annoyed. "Sorry. I just thought that there might be a chance that you know," said Moonbay in her defense. "Well I don't," was all that Irvine said. "How could such a wonderful idea as a vacation to the beach have turned out as something horribly wrong?" asked Moonbay as she put her hands behind her head for comfort while laying on the bed. "It started off good enough today but it just went bad as the day went on. If only this stupid storm would stop then we can go out and look for Fiona. Hopefully she wasn't left out in the storm," said Irvine. "I am sure that she didn't. She is much smarter then that," said Moonbay as she closed her eyes. "Then how is it that she was left out in the storm in the first place?" asked Irvine. "Yeah, that was kind of my fault. Sorry about that," said Moonbay with a sad look on her face. "What did you do?" asked Irvine. "I might as well tell you from the beginning of the day since it will at least give me something to do," said Moonbay with a smirk.  
  
***Flashback***  
  
Looking out the window. Moonbay could see that there were a number of clouds in the sky but it didn't look like anything bad was going to happen. "Looks like today we are going to have more fun, and with Amy and Van gone then it will be even better then yesterday. Although I must say that it was awfully fun seeing her squirming around to try and get out the area we buried her in," said Moonbay to Irvine. "That was definitely one of the highlights of my day until Van came back and unburied her," said Irvine with a laugh. He knew perfectly well that if Van felt like being left alone for a few minutes that he would have just have left her there, but Irvine knew Van had to do it. "If only he hadn't come back. Then we could have had more fun with her. Do you remember what the first thing that she did was?" asked Moonbay with a smirk. "Sure. I think I am still having a bit of trouble hearing from how loud she was yelling at us, but it was definitely worth it," said Irvine with a chuckle. "Are you two ready to go?" asked Fiona as she walked out of the restroom where she was taking a shower. "We have been ready for a while. You sure took your time in there," said Moonbay with a smirk. Deciding to ignore Moonbay's comment Fiona spoke up. "Then let's go," said Fiona happily.  
  
Walking out of the hotel room Fiona immediately ran into someone. "I'm sorry," said Fiona without looking at the person. When she did look up she saw that it was Van. "What are you doing here? I thought you had left?" asked Moonbay stepping around Fiona to get out of the room. "Change of plans. We didn't have a ride back because of a few problems back home," said Van. "We? Please don't say that she is still here," said Irvine. "Yep. We will be staying here till the end of the week just like you," said Van with a smirk. "Wait a minute. How did you know that we were staying the entire week? I don't remember anyone of us telling you this," said Moonbay. "Uh, well, you see, I," stuttered Van trying to find out an excuse besides the truth. Without Moonbay seeing, Irvine took a quick look at Fiona and she gave a weak smile. "What does it matter Moonbay?" asked Irvine. "Nothing I guess. I was just a little curious," said Moonbay. "As long as you two don't ruin our vacation we are fine with it. Deal?" said Irvine as he held out a hand in agreement. "Deal," said Van in agreement. Moonbay knew that Van and Irvine were friends, but she was unaware of Fiona being friends with Van, she also knew that Amy definitely wasn't happy about Van being friends with Irvine. She nearly complains about it every chance that she gets. "Just keep you're loudmouth girlfriend away from me and Fiona and we will be good," said Moonbay with a sigh. "I have no control over that. Although I think it will be more of her wanting to stay away from you," said Van with a smirk. "Van. Why are you talking to these losers?" asked Amy as she walked up to Van's side. "I'll show you loser," said Moonbay about ready to lunge at her for that comment. "Just getting our little situation sorted out. We agreed that we would leave them alone if they left us alone," said Van with a nervous smile hoping to separate the two of them as quickly as possible. "Oh ok," said Amy as she took Van's arm and dragged him off in another direction. "This is going to be a long week because I don't think that she would be happy going a day with finding a way of insulting us," said Moonbay with a sigh. "Well let's go. It will do us no good to just stand here," said Irvine with a smile.  
  
"Um, Moonbay," said Fiona looking up at the sky. "What?" asked Moonbay as she turned around from a stand where she was planning on buying some things. "It looks like it might rain soon," said Fiona looking at the darkening clouds. Moonbay looked up into the sky and then looked at Fiona. "I am sure that we will be fine. I mean, how bad can it get with how nice out it was yesterday?" asked Moonbay with a smile. Fiona looked back up into the sky with worry showing across her face. "Maybe we should start heading back to the hotel just in case it does start raining," said Fiona looking in the direction of the hotel. "There is no rush. I just want to look around for a little while longer," said Moonbay as she admired the items on display in the stand. Rather reluctantly Fiona followed behind Moonbay as they walked farther away from the hotels. "What? Are you following us?" asked Amy upon noticing the two. "Why would we want to? You have nothing of importance to us to make us do something like that," said Moonbay with a smirk. "I probably have everything that you could want because I am rich," said Amy in a snobbish voice. "Let's go before it starts raining," Van whispered into Amy's ear. "Fine," said Amy as they just walked by Fiona and Moonbay back to the hotel. "Snob," said Moonbay as she stuck her tongue out at Amy's retreating form. "Listen Fiona. Can you go to a stand that I saw around a corner over there? I saw something there I wanted and I also want to check out this stand. I will give you the money. All you have to do is pick it up for me. I asked the owner to hold onto it so he should give it to you," said Moonbay in a pleading voice. "Fine," said Fiona knowing that this might help them get back quicker. "Thanks. Afterwards just head back to the hotel. I will be waiting there," said Moonbay. "Alright," said Fiona walking to where she knew Moonbay was talking about.  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
"That was the last time I saw her. On my way back it started to rain hard. I got to the hotel but Fiona didn't come back," said Moonbay with a frown. "You're right," said Irvine with a frown. "About what?" asked Moonbay slightly confused about what he was talking about. "It is your fault that she is still out there," said Irvine not taking his eyes off the window. Moonbay used as much self-control so that she didn't have to strangle Irvine.  
  
Fiona's eyes slowly began to open. She moved slightly but regretted it as she clutched her sore head. 'What happened?' Fiona asked herself. She looked around and saw that she was in a warehouse of some sort. To make it worse it smelled like fish. Taking another look around she noticed that there was a small fire going. She was thankful because if there wasn't a fire she could tell that it was going to be a bit chilly. 'How did I get here? I remember that I was on my way back to the hotel, but what happened after that?' Fiona asked herself. "Alright. I have to think. What happened on the way back to the hotel?" Fiona asked to no one.  
  
***Flashback***  
  
"Here you go miss," said a man with a smile as he handed Fiona a package. "Thank you sir," said Fiona with a smile. "Have a nice day," said the man kindly. Fiona started to walk in the direction of the hotel. Suddenly Fiona could feel drops of rain start to come down. "Not now," Fiona complained as she broke out into a run to get to the hotel as fast as she could. "I am going to kill Moonbay for making me stay outside when I knew that it was going to rain," said Fiona as she ran past buildings that didn't have any place that she could stop to get out of the rain. However the rain started to come down harder and harder and to make it worse the wind was really starting to pick up. The strong winds plus the wet ground made it very hard for Fiona to keep her balance. She kept on running though. a sudden flash of lightning startled Fiona a bit but that was enough to make her lose balance completely and fall hard to the ground. She hit the ground with her head and she passed out.  
  
***End Flashback***  
  
"That's right. I fell and hit my head, but how was it that I got here?" Fiona asked herself. "So you finally decided to wake up?" asked a voice from behind Fiona. She turned around and saw Van standing there with some garbage, probably for the fire. "What are you doing here Van?" asked Fiona with confusion all over her face. "To make a long story short. It was my girlfriend. She forgot something and made me go back for it because she didn't want to get caught in the rain. How considerate," said Van sarcastically. Fiona tried to hold back the giggles that she felt were coming on by what Van had said. "While I was trying to get back as fast as I could I saw you running through the ran. I tried to call you but when I did lightning struck and I saw you lose balance and fall to the ground and hit your head. When you didn't get up I ran over to you. You were unconscious. So I grabbed you and brought you in here to get out of the rain because I was soaked enough and wanted to get out of the rain," said Van with a smile. "Thank you," said Fiona with a smile. "It was no problem," said Van with a smile.  
  
"I wonder how Fiona is doing right now?" said a bored Moonbay as she stared out the window. "Like I said before. She will be just fine. I have known her for a long time and I am sure that unless something happened she would have gone to the best place possible or take a chance and try to run to the hotel," said Irvine with a smile. "I hope you are right because I don't want it to be my fault if something happened to her," said Moonbay with a sigh. There was a sudden knock on the door. "I wonder who that can be," said Moonbay as she got off the bed and walked over to the door. When she opened it she came face to face with the very last person she wanted to see right now. "What do you want and why are you here Amy?" asked an annoyed Moonbay. "It isn't like I wanted to be here," said Amy with the same expression on her face. "Then answer the question. Why are you here?" asked Moonbay with more annoyance. "Do you know where Van is Irvine?" asked Amy without looking at Moonbay. "Nope," said Irvine without even taking his eyes off the window. "There is your answer. Now leave," said Moonbay as she tried to close the door but Amy stopped her. "I see you are missing someone too. I bet she is out there too stupid to get out of the rain," said Amy with a smirk. Moonbay was about to strangle her, but she just left after saying that. "The nerve of her," muttered Moonbay as she walked back and once again laid down on the bed.  
  
"How are things looking out there?" asked Fiona when Van returned. "The same as it has been. Isn't the rain ever going to stop?" Van asked because they had been in there for near two hours. "I know. It hasn't even let up a little for a short time. We might be able to get out of here if it would do that," said Fiona with a frown. "Don't worry about it. As long as we have the fire going we should be fine until it lets up," said Van taking a seat next to Fiona. It was then that Van could hear Fiona shivering a little. "Still cold?" asked Van looking at Fiona. "Yeah. Even with the fire it is still rather cold in here," said Fiona. "It could also be because your clothes are still a little damp from the rain," said Van with worry in his voice. "It isn't too bad," said Fiona but her rattling teeth told him differently. Fiona could then feel her eyes starting to grow heavy a little for the need for sleep. Van also noticed this. "You should get some sleep. Maybe by the time you wake up the rain would have stopped. If it does before then I will wake you up," said Van with a smile. "Thanks," said Fiona as she closed her eyes. She was very uncomfortable because she was still sitting up to keep off the cold ground. Fiona then put her head off to the side and it fell on Van's shoulder. Van was surprised by that but didn't say anything about it by the comfortable look on Fiona's face. He couldn't help but blush a little by how close she was at that moment. "At least she is comfortable," said Van with a smile.  
  
Van eyes slowly started to open up and he noticed that he was still in the warehouse. "What/ when did I fall asleep?" Van asked himself as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He then noticed that Fiona was still resting on his shoulder. By the sounds of it too the rain had slowed down a lot. "Maybe we can get back now just incase it starts to rain harder again," said Van. "Fiona, Fiona. Wake up," said Van as he shook her shoulder lightly. "Five more minutes," muttered Fiona without waking up. "Come on. We should try to get back now since the rain has slowed down," said Van slightly shaking her again. "Fine, fine. I'll get up," said Fiona as she lifted her head from Van's shoulder. They both stood up and walked towards the door. Upon walking outside they noticed that the sky was still very dark from the clouds and a bit of thunder was heard in the distance but it kept getting louder. "The hotel should only be four or five blocks from here. If we hurry then we should be able to get the before it started again," said Van as he grabbed Fiona's hand and they broke out in a run but at a safe speed to avoid tripping. The thunder started to get louder as they got nearer to the hotel. When they were only about a block away from the hotel. Then it started to rain hard once again. They were lucky that they had gotten only a little wet because they reached the hotel and went inside.  
  
Amy was getting bored. She had been waiting down in the lobby to the hotel for the past two hours hoping that at any minute Van would come through the doors. She was about to get up and walk towards her room when Van came running into the hotel. She saw him and ran at him and threw herself upon him. "It is about time that you got back," she scolded him. That was when she noticed Fiona right behind him. "What are you doing with her?" asked Amy sending glares at Fiona. Van thought hard for an excuse. "The clumsy fool fell and hit her head. I would have ignored it but my conscience would let me go until I did," said Van with a smirk. "I always knew you were a moron," Amy told Fiona with a smirk. "A worst of all you made my Van help you," Amy said angrily. "I am sorry that you had to be around her Van," said Amy in a fake sad voice. She then took Van's hand and pulled him away from Fiona.  
  
Fiona was fuming at all the things that she said. She managed to cool down and walk to the elevators. She then pressed the button to her floor. The elevator went up and then came to a stop upon her floor. Slowly walking down the hall Fiona opened the door to their room and Irvine and Moonbay were already upon her. "Thank god you are alright Fiona," said Moonbay happily. "Are you alright?" asked Irvine wanting to make sure. "I am fine. I just want to get a little more rest," said Fiona not wanting to explain what had happened. She just walked past them grabbed some fresh clothes and went into the bathroom to change. She came out a minute later changed into some warm clothes and got into bed and closed her eyes with a smile and fell asleep. 


	7. summer

She felt herself dragging her feet down the street. Fiona really wanted to be home sleeping rather then where she was going. Out of all of the places that she had to be going this had to be the last place that she wanted to be going at this time. It had been a month since her little fun in spring break it was May now much to the very little delight that Fiona had. Now she was dragging her feet to school. Letting out a yawn she continued grudgingly walking down the street. 'Just think thought Fiona. Two more weeks and you will be out for summer vacation,' Fiona's mind told her. "That is if it decides to go by fast. Knowing Amy she will make this these few weeks the worst of my life. Luckily I overheard her saying she was leaving for the summer so I won't have to put up with her. It will be a peaceful non-Amy summer," said Fiona a smile. "Talking to yourself Fiona?" asked Moonbay walking up beside Fiona. "Just thinking how wonderful my summer is going to be," said Fiona happily. "As long as she doesn't have a change in plans then I am going to agree with you there," said Moonbay just as happily. "Now all we have to do is go through the two weeks before we will finally be rid of her for a while," said Fiona with a smile. "Two more weeks with Amy, and Prozen," said Moonbay with a sigh knowing that this was going to be the longest two weeks of her life. "How many times do you think that they are going to try and blame us for something that we don't do?" asked Fiona with a smile. "Knowing them. I'd say somewhere around ten times," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. "I think that it will be more like fifteen," said Fiona smiling as well. "What do you want to bet for it?" asked Moonbay with a smirk, "I could always take money as well," said Moonbay with a grin. Fiona just laughed at her friend.  
  
"Thank you god," whispered Fiona when she walked out of the school later that day. Luckily for Fiona, Amy wasn't there today so she was able to get through the day trouble-free. Overall the day was actually a good day. "Hey Fiona wait up," yelled Moonbay as she ran out of the school shortly after Fiona did. "What is it Moonbay?" asked Fiona with a smile. "Me and Irvine are going to be going to the movies later today. Do you want to come along?" asked Moonbay hastily. Fiona thought it over and remembered that she was going to be with Van later that day. "I am sorry but I am going to be busy later today," said Fiona apologetically. "No problem," said Moonbay. "Looks like you and Irvine are going to be all alone tonight with each other," said Fiona with a grin on her face. Moonbay seemed to blush a little when Fiona said this. "No, No. Nothing is going on between the two of us. You can just forget that," said Moonbay crossing her arms in front of her. "I was just kidding Moonbay," said Fiona with a laugh. "Well I have to go so I will se you tomorrow," said Fiona quickly rushing off. 'I wonder what she is doing later today to take her away from her best friends,' thought Moonbay, "Oh well. I guess it doesn't really matter," said Moonbay turning around and walking in the opposite direction.  
  
"I was beginning to wonder if you were going to come," said Van with a smile when he opened his door to see Fiona. "I almost didn't. Prozen gave so much homework that I have been doing them since I got home and I got finished just before I came here," said Fiona sadly. "Ouch. I am glad that I don't have him for a teacher," said Van grimacing at the mere thought of it. "Knowing him. If he had the chance he would try to give homework out over the summer just to ruin it for everyone," said Fiona with a sigh. "Good thing he can't," said Van. "I had better hope not," said Fiona with a sigh. "Where's Amy. She wasn't at school today?" asked Fiona although she didn't really care. "Out sick. Nothing serious but it is kind of a relief for me to get away from her for at least a day," said Van happily. "Sure is nice to be around with at times but at other times she can drive me nuts," said Van sighing in relief. Fiona giggled a little. "So. What are we going to be doing tonight?" asked Fiona with a smile. "Why not watch a movie. Plus that and my mom might be happy to see you," said Van with a smile. Fiona loved Van's mom. She was very kind, and yet very fragile. She also adored Fiona. Just recently though, she got really sick and needed some serious help. "How is she doing?" asked Fiona seriously. "She is doing good right now. Do you want to see her?" asked Van. "Sure," said Fiona as they quietly walked up the stairs in his house.  
  
A soft knock was placed on the door. "Come in," said a rather soft voice. The door to the room opened and Van and Fiona walked into the door. "Ah Fiona it is so good to see you," said Van's mother. One time when Fiona had seen Van's mother in a good state of health she was impressed. For someone that had given birth to two kids she looked rather young, yet she had a kindness and wisdom at times that could only come with age. "Hello," said Fiona a nicely as possible. "How are you feeling?" asked Fiona quietly. "I am feeling a lot better," she said with a smile. She then tried to sit up. "You are still weak mom. Just rest a little," said Van helping his mother to lay back down. "Thank you Van," she said coughing a little. Fiona then walked over and took a seat in a chair that was next to the bed. "You are so nice to come and talk to me," said Van's mother to Fiona. "It is my pleasure to do so," said Fiona with a smile. "Van. Why can't you have a girlfriend that is like Fiona, and not like Amy," asked Van's mother staring at her son. Fiona seemed to turn a little red and Van just scratched his head nervously. "I don't know," was all that Van was able to get out. She just shook her head and closed her eyes slightly. "Come on Fiona. Maybe we should let her sleep to regain some of her energy," said Van lightly taking Fiona's arm. "Right," said Fiona with a smile at the thought of his mother getting any better.  
  
"You know. This just doesn't seem as fun without Fiona round. Wouldn't you say?" asked Moonbay after they left a movie theater. "There were other things that she had to do so I guess there wasn't really anything that we could do," said Irvine. "Yeah, I know, but it is just more fun when the three of us are together," pouted Moonbay. "Hey I have an idea. Why don't we call her and see if she is busy now? We can see if maybe she wants to do something fun tomorrow," said Moonbay running off to a phone. Irvine tried to stop her but she was already gone. Picking up a phone Moonbay quickly dialed in Fiona's number and waited while the phone rang. It only rang a few times before Fiona's mother picked up the phone. "Hello," she said. ". This is Moonbay. I was wondering if Fiona was there to talk?" asked Moonbay happily. "I am sorry but she left a few hours ago to go to a friends house," Fiona's mother said. "Oh really? Then I am sorry for bothering you," said Moonbay as she hung up the phone. "She is at a friends house," said Moonbay when Irvine walked up. 'Has to be Van,' thought Irvine upon hearing this. "She never really talked about other friends. I wonder who it would be," said Moonbay pondering this over in her head. "It is just a friend. Why not just ask her tomorrow when she is home?' asked Irvine with a smile. "I guess we will have to do that. Since it is getting late," said Moonbay looking up at the dark sky.  
  
Van and Fiona just sat on the couch that was in the living room of his house as a movie played on the TV. When it ended Fiona let out a yawn. "I guess I had better head home," said Fiona getting off the couch and walking towards the door. Van looked at a clock and saw that it was near midnight. "It is getting awfully late. Why not stay here in the extra room for the night?" asked Van looking out for her safety. Fiona also looked at the clock and noticed the time. "I guess so. Let me just call my mom and tell her so she won't worry," said Fiona heading to the nearest phone. A minute later Fiona came back. "She said that it was alright," said Fiona with a smile. "Ok then," said Van as they headed up the stairs. Fiona went into a door that was opposite from Van's room. "Night," said Van before opening his door and walking in and closing it. Fiona walked into the room and closed the door and since she didn't have any clothes to change into she just climbed into bed. It took very little effort to fall asleep. All she did was close her eyes and she instantly fell asleep.  
  
A knock came upon the door of the door of the flyheight residence. Van's father Dan Flyheight was the only one that was up at the time. He stood up and grabbed the cup of coffee that he had in front of him. He walked over to the door. He took a sip of his coffee and then opened the door to find Amy with a bright smile on her face. "Hello Mr. Flyheight. Is Van here?" asked Amy with a smile. Dan just stared at her for a second not believing the act of niceness that she was putting. "He is in his room sleeping, like normal people do at this time on weekends," said Dan just looking at her since it was only six thirty in the morning. The same thing was going through his mind just as was going through his wife's mind, 'How could he want to go out with her? She puts up a nice act around me but I don't buy it for a second. I would rather him be going out with Fiona then her. At least Fiona doesn't have to put up a nice act. She is just naturally nice,' thought Dan with a sigh. "Then why are you up?" asked Amy with her fake smile. "I have things that I have to do today that make me have to get up the early," was all that Dan said. "Well if Van isn't up then I will just go wake him up," said Amy just walking into the house. 'If she wasn't my bosses daughter then I would just throw her out of here,' thought Dan, 'Plus I know that Fiona is here right now. This is probably not going to be very pleasant if they were to see each other,' thought Dan with a sigh. "I am sure that he is not going to be very happy about you waking him up this early," said Dan when he saw her walking towards the stairs. "I am sure he won't be. I have so much planned for the day. I am sure that he will be happy to see me," said Amy with a smile. She then bounded up the stairs without another word. He tried to stop her but she wouldn't listen. 'Oh please don't let them see each other,' thought Dan.'  
  
"Oh Van," said Amy in a voice that sounded too nice for her own good. Van heard this but just ignored it hoping that she would go away. "It is time to wake up," she said in the same tone of voice. This time Van put a pillow over his head to block it off. His door opened up and she walked into the room. "Come on, get up. I have so much planned for us today. "Go away," groaned Van cracking his eyes a little to look at his alarm clock. "Come back in four hours," groaned Van before turning on his other side and trying to fall asleep again. "Come on, get up," she said more urgently. "No," said Van. "If I have to leave then I am going to come back in a few hours with some water," said Amy in a demanding voice. "Alright. I'll get up," said Van remembering what happened the last time it happened. The last time he did believe her and she left and actually did come back with water and she dumped it all over him and his bed. Van shuddered at the mere thought of it and very reluctantly got out of bed.  
  
Fiona groaned at got out of bed when she heard Amy's voice. 'Great what can she be doing here?' Fiona asked herself. 'What will she do if she finds me here?' she also asked herself. "Hey Van why is it that you never let me stay over? I mean so have plenty of rooms in this house," came Amy's voice from right outside Fiona's room. 'Oh great,' thought Fiona fear starting to go through her body. "Does it matter?" asked Van nervously from outside the door. Fiona could tell he was nervous about her finding out but she could also tell that Amy didn't even seem to notice. "What's the matter with me staying over," she pouted. When Fiona heard this all she felt like doing was throwing up. She got up to try to get out of sight in case Amy came in but her foot snagged on something and she fell onto the floor with a loud thump.  
  
"What was that?" asked Amy once she heard the loud thump. "What was what?" asked Van getting even more nervous. "I just heard a loud thumping noise from inside the room," said Amy walking towards the door. "I didn't hear anything?" said Van quickly. "Are you hiding something form me?" asked Amy suspiciously. "Of course not. Why would I?" asked Van even more nervous then before. Amy was now in front of the door. "There is nothing in there. I swear. It is only a guestroom," said Van with a cheesy smile. Amy the grabbed the handle on the door and turned it. 'Oh great here it comes,' thought Van cringing at the thought of what was going to happen. Amy walked into the room. 'Here it comes,' thought Van cringing even more. Amy then walked out of the room without a word and with a smile on her face. Van was slightly confused by this. Taking a quick look into the room he saw that it was completely empty. "See didn't I tell you?" asked Van without one ounce of nervousness in his voice. "You're right. How could I have not of believed you?" asked Amy wrapping her arms around him and started to draw imaginary circles on him. Van then gave a small chuckle.  
  
Fiona heard the voices of Van and Amy starting to walk away from the room. Once she heard that the two were away from the room she quietly crawled out from under the bed. "That was just a little too close," Fiona said in a whisper. There was then another knock on the door and Fiona was about to jump under the bed again until She heard Dan Flyheights voice. "It is ok to come out Fiona. They have left," said Dan nicely. Fiona opened the door and slowly walked out. "Van told me to tell you he is sorry for leaving," said Dan with a smile. "It is ok. I know he had to do it," said Fiona with a frown. Dan just looked at her slightly confused. "What do you mean he had to? He doesn't have to do anything if he doesn't want to," said Dan. "Oops that must have come out wrong, I meant to say that he had his duties as a boyfriend," lied Fiona. She was sure that she once heard Van say that he never told his parents because Amy's father told him not to if he valued his fathers job. "Would you like me to drive you home Fiona?" asked Dan with a smile. "No thank you. I think I could probably use a good walk," said Fiona nicely before walking downstairs. She reached the door and stopped. "Thank you for letting me stay over," said Fiona nicely. "It is no problem. It is always a pleasure to have you over," said Dan with a smile before he saw Fiona walking out of the door. "If Van was ever to get married. I wish that it would be with someone like Fiona," said Dan before he went into the kitchen for another cup of coffee.  
  
"Hey Fiona. Where were you last night? Your mother said you were at a friends how," said Moonbay as she saw Fiona walking down the street and ran over to talk to her. "I was," was all that Fiona said, "By the way. Why are you up this early? I am pretty sure that you are never up this early on a weekend," said Fiona with a confused look. She looked at Moonbay and saw that she was slightly red. A smirk then appeared on Fiona's face. "Weren't you with Irvine last night?" asked Fiona with the smirk still on. Moonbay grew an even brighter shade of red. "What happened?" asked Fiona smiling. "No use hiding it from you. You will probably find out sooner or later. So I might as well tell you. Well you see we were at his house watching a movie and I kind of fell asleep. I woke up for some reason and saw that I had my head laying on Irvine's shoulder. I just left after that," said Moonbay timidly. Fiona just chuckled a little at her friend's confession. "It was an embarrassing moment. What was I supposed to do?" asked an embarrassed Moonbay. "Don't ask me," said Fiona. 'Although something like that did happen before,' she thought as an afterthought. "Hey don't worry about it. It isn't a bad thing that you are attracted to Irvine," said Fiona finding it rather enjoyable to tease her friend instead of being the one that is being teased for once. "I am not attracted to Irvine!" yelled Moonbay Making Fiona shrink back a little. Fiona then chuckled nervously at her friend's anger. "Ok, Ok. I believe you," said Fiona nervously. "So do you want to do something today or are you doing something again. By the way who is this friend of yours? I never heard you talk about any other friends," said Moonbay eyeing Fiona. "I think that I had better be getting home. I don't want my parents to worry about me," said Fiona trying to change the subject. Then before Moonbay could do anything Fiona just ran off. "Hey! You haven't answered my question," yelled Moonbay as she ran after Fiona but it was no use because Fiona was already long gone. "What is she trying to hide from me? I wonder if Irvine might know. They are old friends after all. I am sure that Fiona might have told him something," said Moonbay. She then started to turn a light shade of red just thinking about him. "Ah. What the heck am I thinking?" Moonbay asked herself. She then walked off not thinking about it anymore.  
  
"Are you even listening to me Van?" asked Amy noticing that Van was looking elsewhere. "What? Oh of course I am," said Van with a cheesy grin. "Then what do you think of what I have been telling you?" asked Amy looking at Van. "Um, well. Can you repeat what you said?" asked Van with the same cheesy grin. Amy rolled her eyes at him. "What is with you today? It is like you don't even want to be with me," said Amy in a disappointed voice. "I am just tired. That is all. You just woke me up earlier then I wanted to get up so I am a bit tired," said Van with a yawn. "I didn't wake you up that early," said Amy. "It was six thirty," said Van. "That isn't early," said Amy with a smile. "For normal people our age it is," said Van with another yawn. "Come on. Wake up. We have the entire day ahead of us," said Amy out loud. "You know. I feel sorry for you Van. Having such a loudmouth girlfriend," came Moonbay's voice. "Who are you calling loudmouth?" yelled Amy turning to see a smirking Moonbay. "Does Van have any other girlfriends?" asked Moonbay as her smirk started to grow a little. "I will show you loudmouth," yelled Amy getting up from her seat and face directly at Moonbay. Van grabbed her arm. "I am not really up to this, this early in the morning," said Van with a yawn. "You are right Van. I am not going to waist my time on a loser like her right now," said Amy with a smirk before she turned grabbed Van's arm and started to walk away.  
  
The days went by and Fiona found herself at school once again. 'Come on, come on,' thought Fiona as she sat in her class on the last day of school just looking at the clock. 'Why the heck is it going so slow?' Fiona asked herself. "Miss Fiona. This may be the last day of school but I would really appreciate it if you would pay attention," said her teacher seeing that Fiona was only interested in the clock. Fiona jumped a little by the teacher talking to her all of a sudden. The class seemed to find this rather amusing. Fiona flushed with embarrassment. "Now back to what I was saying," said the teacher but he was cut off when the bell rang signaling the end of the school year. No one cared what the teacher said and made a mad dash for the door. Fiona slowly got up from her desk and calmly walked out of the door. Glad that she was out of school and wouldn't have to come back for a few months.  
  
"Finally we are out of here. A few good months without Amy, a few good months without Prozen, and a few good months without school all together," said Moonbay as both her and Fiona were walking home after school. Fiona couldn't help but smile at the mere thought of no Amy. "So how are you going to spend your vacation?" Moonbay asked Fiona. "Just staying home and resting the entire summer," said Fiona with a sigh of relief about just being out of school. "I am going to do as much as possible before we are put back in the prison known as school," said Moonbay happily. "Listen. I have to go. So I will call you later," said Moonbay with a smile before running off. Fiona just smiled and continued to walk on her own.  
  
"What are you going to be doing for summer vacation Fiona?" asked Van later on in the day while he was over at her house. "I really don't know. For right now though I guess I will just be staying home," said Fiona as she laid down on her bed, "What about you?" asked Fiona. "Amy is trying to get me to come with her for vacation. I am trying to find a way to stay here, because I really just want to relax this summer and not do too much," said Van as he sat back in a chair. "Why not just say that you want to stay to see me?' joked Fiona with a slight giggle. "Like that would work. That would make her more determined to get me to go. Either that or she would want to send me to a mental house thinking that I must be crazy to want to stay here with you," said Van with a laugh. "Sometimes I hate to have to be friends only in secret," said Fiona with a sigh. "There is nothing that we can do. It will have to stay that way unless a miracle happens," said Van with a sigh. "I can't wait till I get out of high school. Then I won't have to worry about Amy nagging on me every second of the day. I can live as freely as I want," said Fiona dreamily. "What would you do once high school is over?" asked Van curiously. "I guess I would go on to college. Then maybe get a job and possibly start a family," said Fiona, "What would you do?" asked Fiona. "Probably the same things as you. Go to college, get married, and have a family. I guess that would be a good life," said Van with a sigh, "But it will be years before we get out of school. That is so long away. I wonder if I will even be able to last that long," said Van slightly annoyed that he had to wait that long. "Who knows maybe it will go by in a flash and it will be like nothing had even happened," said Fiona with a smile. "If only that were possible. You don't think that maybe you can do that for me, can you?" asked Van with a grin. "Sorry, but I can't do things like that. Although at times I do wish that I did," said Fiona with a sigh. "Who knows? Maybe you can," said Van with a laugh. Fiona couldn't help but giggle as well. "How I would just love to get there and have things be over with," said Van. 


	8. Fiona's plea

Footsteps were heard running down the sidewalk. It was rather early but early enough because school was about to start. "Stupid, stupid, stupid," muttered Fiona. "Of all the times for my clock to stop working it had to be on the first day of the school year," said Fiona as she ran as fast as she could down the streets. "It is my senior year and I have to do good if I want to get into a good college," she said through her heavy breathing because of the running. She was running so fast that she didn't have time to stop when someone stepped right in front of her. Fiona hit the person and they both fell to the ground. Fiona hit the ground with a thump. She quickly got up and was glad to see that it was only Moonbay that she had run into instead of people like Amy or any of her friends. "Watch where you are going Fiona," muttered Moonbay as she rubbed her sore backside. "Sorry about that. I wasn't watching where I was going Moonbay," said Fiona getting up and giving Moonbay a hand before she started towards school again, this time she just walked the rest of the way. "You are right about that," said Moonbay as she continued to rub the area that she fell on. "How did your summer go Fiona?" asked Moonbay trying to start up a conversation. "Same as usual. It doesn't bother me though. As long as there is some peace and quiet without her nagging me all the time then I would be very happy," said Fiona with a smile. "I know what you mean Fiona," said Moonbay, "Now it is back to another year of school though and another year of her," said Moonbay with a sigh.  
  
"Why does school have to start so early in the morning?" Van asked with a yawn as he walked out of the door to his house. "It wouldn't be too bad if I could get a little extra sleep. Then I might make it on time once in a while. It isn't my fault if I ignore my alarm clock," muttered Van as he stuck his hands in his pockets. "Sure it is. You are the one that is ignoring it," said Irvine from right behind Van. "Shut up. I don't feel like arguing this early in the morning," muttered Van as he kicked a stone that was by his feet. "I heard you stayed home again for the summer when your girlfriend invited you to go with her," said Irvine with a grin at what was going through his mind. "So what?" asked Van suspiciously. "You didn't by any chance stay because of Fiona did you?" asked Irvine grinning more. "So what? She is a friend. I was just keeping her company," said Van eyeing Irvine. "I don't mean like that," said Irvine grinning even more if it was actually possible with how much he was grinning at that moment. "Huh?" asked Van for a moment before realizing what he was saying. "Nothing like that you pervert," yelled Van in Irvine's face. "Sure, sure," said Irvine in a tone that told Van he wasn't believing a word that Van said. "We are not like that," Van yelled again. "We're just friends," said Van calming down again. "Yeah, sure, and that is why you are getting so defensive over all of this?" said Irvine with the grin still on his face. 'Why do I even bother?' Van asked himself knowing that Irvine wasn't even listening. "Are you even listening to a word that I have been saying?" asked Van a bit angrily. "Sorry, but what did you just say?" asked Irvine still smirking. "Never mind," muttered Van. Irvine then started to run in front and was soon out of sight. Van was slightly glad about this because he wouldn't have to listen to Irvine by now.  
  
"By the way how did your trip go Moonbay?" asked Fiona with a smile. "It was awesome going to those beautiful islands with all of the beaches. I wish that you could have been there. Then it would have been the best vacation ever," said Moonbay with a smile. "Why didn't you come anyways? I invited you and you refused it," said Moonbay looking at Fiona. "I would have but there were some things that I wanted to do here. Sorry if I disappointed you," said Fiona apologetically. "You are right that you disappointed me," said Moonbay with a fake pout. Then the both of them started to laugh. "So, what classes do you have this year?" asked Moonbay curiously. The annoyed look that Fiona had on her face was not too reassuring to Moonbay. Fiona reached into her backpack and pulled out her schedule. She handed it to Moonbay and Moonbay looked it over and cringed at just reading it. "Someone must be out to get you all of the years. Having Prozen for a teacher all of your years must count as cruel and unusual punishment," said Moonbay noting that Fiona had Prozen again. "Do you think that someone is out to make you suffer?" asked Moonbay. "Ok stupid question," said Moonbay seeing the weird look that Fiona was giving her. "Come on. We have to hurry up or we are going to be late," said Fiona as she started to walk a little faster and Moonbay followed right behind her.  
  
It was very peaceful and quiet for Van at the moment. He was enjoying it a lot but it had to be interrupted when a car pulled up right next to him. "Hey there Van," came the voice of Van's girlfriend Amy. Van put on a smile and turned towards her. "Hey there," said Van. "I am surprised to see you up this early and not running to the school at the last moment," said Amy with a slight giggle. "My parents are making sure that I don't continue to be late to school this year because they want to see me get into a good college next year," said Van. "I see. Do you need a ride?" asked Amy with a smile. "I think that I am going to walk," said Van. "Oh no you don't," said Amy grabbing his arm and pulling him into the passengers seat. "I haven't seen you all summer and I want to spend some time with you," said Amy wrapping herself around his arm. "If you weren't going to take no for an answer then why did you even bother asking me if I needed a ride?" asked Van laughing a bit nervously. She actually seemed to think it over for a second before shrugging her shoulders and then starting to speed the car down the road. "That was one of the best vacations I ever had, but just one thing Van. Why is it that you never want to come with me on vacation anymore?" asked Amy with a fake pout. "I just didn't feel like it. Is there something wrong with just wanting to stay home for once?" asked Van curiously. "Yes there is because you have done it for the past few summers. All I want to do is spend a little bit of time with you, but you just won't come with me on my vacations," pouted Amy. Van in a way couldn't help but feel a little bad. "How about I make it up to you?" asked Van a little nervous. "That would be great," said Amy happily. 'Somehow I know I am going to regret this,' thought Van. Van then spotted Fiona and Moonbay walking towards the school. However Amy did as well. "Great. That is the last thing that I wanted to see on the first day of school," muttered Amy clearly annoyed to see them. "Just leave them alone," said Van with his head in his hands. "Are you taking their side now?" asked Amy looking at Van hard. "No. I just don't feel like getting into this, this early in the morning," muttered Van. Amy seemed to be happy by this. "You are right," said Amy with a smile. "I will leave them alone. At least for now," she said happily. 'Thank god,' thought Van in relief.  
  
"Oh great look who is coming," said Moonbay spotting Amy's car. "I really don't feel like dealing with her right now," said Moonbay angrily. She was prepared for when Amy stopped to insult them like she took every chance to do. It didn't come however. Moonbay looked confused when they just drove right past them. "That was just a little strange. She didn't even try to stop to make fun of us. I wonder why she didn't do anything," said Moonbay a little startled. Fiona didn't say it but she knew that Van had something to do with it because she saw him in the car as well. "What does it matter? likes just go before she comes back to try her luck," said Fiona calmly. "That is a really good idea. I don't want it to happen before school starts, because if she insults us then I will insult her back and she won't be able to retaliate with anything except for words," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. "You think so?" asked Fiona looking at Moonbay curiously. "I know so. She may be cozy with a lot of the teachers and a good student so they respect her but if she got in a fight or something than they will have to use discipline," said Moonbay with a smirk on her face. Fiona couldn't help but laugh a little bit. "Sure it works both ways as well but as long as we can keep our composure then everything would be alright," said Moonbay happily.  
  
'Thank you god,' thought Van after they had passed Fiona and Moonbay. 'That bought them a little time to try to find some ways out of a future argument for the day. Although that I am positive that that is a physical impossibility. If they could then I would definitely be happy, because I am very tired of all of the arguing that goes on between these two,' thought Van. He let off a sigh of relief. "Something wrong? Having second doubts about not picking on them right now?" asked Amy with a smirk. "No it isn't that. It is just I really don't want to be going back to school at the moment," said Van sighing again. "It isn't that bad," said Amy happily. "Maybe not for you but for me it is a little bit harder," said Van laying back in his seat. "Hey. Do you think that you can let me out? I want to walk the rest of the way," said Van hoping that she would agree. "Fine, but you had better get there soon," said Amy stopping the car. "Thanks. I will see you later," said Van giving her a kiss before starting to walk with her driving off.  
  
"How long do you think it is going to take before she tries something?" asked Fiona as her and Moonbay were walking through the halls towards their homeroom. Moonbay merely looked at her watch. "I would have to say in another minute or two. You know that she just can't resist a moment that she could use to insult us. I mean it is like a daily tradition. A tradition that would be better if someone broke it. Who knows though. maybe with a little luck she will decide to just ignore us for the entire year. Yet that won't be possible and we both know that," muttered Moonbay half- heartedly. "It is always good to at least dream about such a wonderful life though," said Fiona as she opened up her locker. Nothing was said while she placed her things in her locker for the year. Fiona closed her locker and both her and Moonbay started to walk again towards their homeroom. Fiona noticed that Moonbay was too quiet for her normal self. "Some thing wrong?" asked Fiona looking at Moonbay. Moonbay came out of her quietness. "No. I was just thinking," was all that Moonbay said. "About what?" asked Fiona curiously. "I was just thinking about ways that I could annoy Amy and not get in trouble for it," said Moonbay with a huge smirk on her face. Fiona couldn't help but laugh at Moonbay's little statement. "Come on. We had better get to homeroom," said Fiona laughing just a little.  
  
The two of them walked into the classroom to see Dr. D was already there in his teacher's desk. To her unwanted luck, Amy was there as well. Luckily she was talking to a friend. So Fiona tried to get by to the desks that Moonbay and her have had since she first came to the school. Although Amy didn't look at Fiona, Fiona knew that she knew that she was here. Sure enough as she was passing by Amy did the exact same thing she did the first day that Fiona came here. She stuck her foot out. Fiona saw it this time though and stepped over it while also making sure to step on it before she went by. Amy was immediately stood on one foot, yelling in pain as she nursed her sore foot. "Is there something wrong Amy?" asked Dr. D seeing her outburst. She then noticed everyone was looking at her. She sat down muttering, "No sir." Moonbay was on the verge of tears from this. "That is one way that you can do it," said Fiona happily when she sat down next to Moonbay. "She can't really blame you because she was the one that started it, and all that you have to do is say that it was an accident because you stepped on her outstretched leg, which she just so happened to put out while you were right next to her," said Moonbay giggling a little. "It also helps that the teacher isn't one of the ones that think of her as this perfect little woman," said Moonbay laughing again. At the moment Van came walking into the room. 'Wasn't he with Amy? So why did he come in after her? usually she will make sure that he is with her when she is at school,' thought Fiona curiously. Van looked at Amy who was still nursing her hurt foot and then he looked up at Fiona. Fiona just smiled and sat back in her seat. Van didn't bother to say anything as he took a seat next to Amy who was currently glaring at Fiona. Fiona noticed this and just smiled back at her making the woman even angrier.  
  
"Did you see what she did to me?" asked Amy in a furious voice. "Um, no. I came in after it all happened. I only knew that something happened when I saw you holding your foot and glaring at her," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders. "She stepped on my foot and I am sure that it was on purpose," said Amy with a pout. "How did that happened?" asked Van barely able to control himself from laughing at it. "All I tried to do was trip her. That is all," said Amy still pouting. "Didn't you try to do that before?" asked Van as he seemed to remember her talking about something like that. "The first day that she came to this school," said Amy. "Didn't she do something similar that day as well?" asked Van trying to remember. "Yeah. She pulled my chair out from under me when she fell to the floor," said Amy still a bit angry. "If you knew that something like that was going to end up happening, then why did you do it again?" asked a curious Van. "I didn't think that she would do anything this time," said Amy with a pout. "Think it over a bit next time and things might turn out a little better," said Van. "I will try," said Amy as she reached up and kissed him.  
  
"I think. That I am going to hurl," said Moonbay upon seeing the two kissing. She even went as far as running to a trashcan and faking throwing up to make her point. Fiona couldn't help but laugh at her friend's antics. "I realize that you are poor but eating out of the trash is just unsanitary. I feel bad for the bugs that live in it to be near your face," said Amy seeing Moonbay faking throwing up. "They would run for their lives out of horror of seeing you face in a ten feet radius," said Moonbay knowing that this was going to be fun. "At least I don't kill them with just my looks alone," said Amy with a smirk. "You are right. You don't kill them. You make them go through a fate worse then death that makes them want to die," said Moonbay with a smirk. Amy scowled before walking away with a scowl on her face. "Moonbay one, Amy zero," said Moonbay with a grin on her face.  
  
"If looks could kill then I would definitely be dead by now," muttered Fiona seeing that Amy was still glaring at her. "You would have been dead a long time ago with how many times she has glared at you like that. Beside isn't that our mission? To make her that mad?" asked Moonbay with a slight grin. "That is your mission, but I must admit that it is definitely fun to do at times," said Fiona knowing that it was the truth. "I know what you mean. I would do it more often but she has Prozen looking after her so it is much harder to get away with anything when he is within a mile radius," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. "Sometime this year I will get even with both of them for all that annoying and pointless things that they have done to us," said Moonbay with a grin which kind of frightened Fiona a little. "Don't go over your head when you do, do that," said Fiona with a nervous laugh. "If I get in trouble then so be it, but I will make sure that the both of them are going to pay," said Moonbay with the grin still on. "Whatever you say," said Fiona before walking off to go to her first class.  
  
While Moonbay was walking towards her classroom she saw something that seemed to make her laugh a lot. There was Thomas and he seemed to be talking to his locker about something. "You know it is pointless to talk to a locker because they can't respond," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. Thomas turned around to look at her and blushed in embarrassment at being caught. "Why not just ask her? It will help you out a great deal better instead of asking a locker out," said Moonbay with a slight giggle. "I-I don't think that I can do it. What if I mess up?" asked Thomas. "Also I am not sure that she would even want to go out with me," said Thomas quietly. "Awfully negative about what she is going to say. Try asking and maybe things will go your way," said Moonbay with a grin. "You two really are pathetic," came a voice that both knew so well. "I guess a geek will attract a geek," said Amy with a smirk. "Who asked you?" Moonbay yelled into her face. "Temper, temper. I was only telling a fact," said Amy with a smirk. "Well no asked you to voice you opinion. While we're voicing our opinions, I guess I will say what I think. I think you are a stuck up woman who only gets what she wants because she goes crying to daddy every time. You no conscience about other peoples feeling, so that just makes it worse," Moonbay yelled into Amy's face. What happened next only made Moonbay even angrier. Amy just smirked at her. "Are you done yet? I really don't care what you think because I am much better than you, and that you are saying if from a person that could only wish to be someone like me," said Amy with a grin. "Me want to be like you? That is the biggest load of rubbish that I have ever heard in my life. The day that I would want to be like you is. well never actually. I would rather kill myself than ever be like you," Moonbay yelled back. Amy just smiled and turned away and walked in the direction that Fiona went. "Stuck up snob," muttered Moonbay before she walked in the direction of her next class.  
  
'Figures that the one class that I hate the most would have to be the first period of the day. They are out to ruin my life. Why not just keep ruining the rest of the day for me as a start?' Fiona thought to herself as she quietly walked towards her most dreaded place in the world. "Out of my way freak," said Amy as she shoved her way past Fiona. "Better a freak then a snot nosed brat," muttered Fiona under her breath. "What was that?" asked Amy angrily as she got right into Fiona's face. "I said that it is better to be a freak then a snot nosed brat," Fiona said right back to her. Van happened to be walking by at that moment. 'Sometimes those two need to give it a break. They are always at each other's throats. I hate to admit it but sometimes Fiona has to know when to stop. So does Amy as well. If they don't stop then one is going to eventually do something to the other. I wish this will all end,' thought Van with a look of exhaust on his face. "Van honey. Did you hear what she said?" pouted Amy as she wrapped herself around him. Van gave both of them looks that clearly said that he didn't want to get involved in the argument. "That's right go running to you boyfriend when you know that you can't win. Stop making others do your job and do things on your own," said an annoyed Fiona. Amy grunted before turning around still latched to Van. "Come on Van," said Amy pulling him. He didn't move. "What are you doing? Planning to go with her?" asked Amy angrily. "No. It is just that my class is in the other direction," said Van pointing down the opposite way. "Oh right," said Amy with a embarrassed laugh. She immediately let go of Van. "I guess I will se you later then," said Amy as she kissed him. Fiona just rolled her eyes and walked past them to her first class. 'What did I ever do to get a life like this? I have always been a good person. So why is it that I can't seem to live a more peaceful life?' Fiona asked herself.  
  
There it was. The one door that she had to continue walking through for the past four years to her most hated class. It also happened to be the class that seemed to hate her the most. She slowly reached for the handle but was once again shoved aside by Amy as she opened the door and walked through saying things to Fiona like how she needs to watch where she is standing. "I didn't know that it was illegal to stand," Fiona mumbled to herself. She then opened the door and walked into the room. She was immediately looked at by Prozen. "Why is it that I can't seem to get rid of you?" Prozen asked staring at her hard. "How should I know? I am not the one that makes the schedules. If I did then I wouldn't be caught dead in this class," said Fiona in a dull voice. She then started to walk to an open seat. "You had better watch what you say around me," Prozen said after her. Amy then walked up to him. "Mr. Prozen it is a pleasure to see you again," said Amy in a polite voice. "It is always a pleasure to teach you," said Prozen in a voice that he always used when it came to Amy. 'Shoot me. Just shoot me now,' thought Fiona as her head hit the desk.  
  
'Why is it that I keep getting stuck here every year most people get new teachers every year, yet I continue to get the same one. One of the people that hates me the most,' thought Fiona as she listened to a boring lecture from Prozen. She was also unlucky because Amy was in the same class again as well. Unlike the first year, Fiona learned to keep behind her so that she couldn't do anything serious. "Are you listening to what I am saying Fiona?" asked Prozen from the front of the class. "Yes sir," said Fiona in a very bored tone. "Just like the last fifty times you have asked that same question," Fiona continued to say. Prozen glared at her before turning around. 'I wonder if they would let me transfer classes,' thought Fiona. A while ago Fiona learned that Prozen didn't do as much if you showed that you didn't really care about what he does. It didn't stop him from giving her a detention every once in a while. Most likely Amy had requested a lot of them. 'Those two have been out to get me for years. I really want to get out of this class,' thought Fiona sadly.  
  
'This day is almost exactly like the first day I went to this school. Sometimes I wish that Amy would suddenly drop off the face of this planet with Prozen right behind her. That way I wouldn't have to listen to them,' thought Fiona as she picked up some food for her lunch. "Hey there Fiona," came Thomas's voice. "Oh, hello Thomas," said Fiona with a smile. "Um, well I was wondering if I could talk to you about something?" asked Thomas rather nervously. "I guess," said Fiona nicely. Thomas didn't say anything for a few moments. "What is it Thomas?" asked Fiona seeing how nervous he was. "Well. You see," said Thomas but he was cut off because Moonbay broke in. "Hey there you two. How are my two good friends doing?" asked Moonbay with a grin. "A little annoyed by my schedule but just fine," said Fiona with a smile. Fiona then turned back to Thomas. "What is it you wanted to say Thomas?" asked Fiona with a smile. "Never mind," said Thomas with a sigh of defeat. "Come on. I have a table saved for us," said Moonbay as she pulled on the two barely giving them time to pay for their lunch.  
  
"Come on Fiona. cheer up. Just think this absolutely wonderful thought. If you can live through this year then you won't have to see either of them ever again as long as you don't end up going to the same college as Amy," said Moonbay with a slight laugh just trying to cheer her friend up. "Too bad you don't have the same class as me. Dr. D is hilarious at some of the things that he does to help us learn. Fiona then seemed to brighten up a little bit. Moonbay seemed to notice this a little. "What's up with you. Weren't you just upset a minute ago?" asked Moonbay eyeing her friend suspiciously. "I have something that I am going to try to do. I will see you later," said Fiona happily as she ran off away from Moonbay. "Hey wait up," yelled Moonbay running after her. "What?" asked Fiona when Moonbay had caught up. "What are you planning to do?" asked Moonbay looking at Fiona. "Isn't it obvious?" asked Fiona happily. "No, not really," said Moonbay unable to think of anything. "What I am going to try to do is get out of that class and try to get into your class," said Fiona with a smile. "Good luck with that. I have tried to do that with a different class and they wouldn't do that," said Moonbay dully. "We'll see," said Fiona happily.  
  
"No," said the woman that was behind the desk in the office. "But why?" asked a disheartened Fiona. "We try to go by the scheduled that we make at the beginning of the school year," said the woman. "I have had this teacher for every year that I have been here. He has given things like detentions for no reason. Blamed me for things that I didn't do," said Fiona trying to persuade the woman. "I said no," said the woman. "You know. I might be able to learn a lot more if I was to remain in the class a lot more. Prozen sends me out way so much that it makes it hard for me to keep up with the rest of the class," Fiona said in as much need as possible. The woman actually seemed to be considering it for a little while. She then just shook her head. "I can't do that," said the woman. "You are in charge of what classes we are in. I am sure that you can do something. I mean you are such a wonderful person. I am sure of that," said Fiona with a smile. 'If nothing else works then I guess I can just try flattery,' thought Fiona as she smiled. "Anyways. The students would definitely give you more respect if you were to do this," said Fiona. The woman definitely seemed a little flattered by what Fiona was saying. What came next made Fiona smile a little. "I will see what I can do," said the woman. "Thank you," said Fiona happily.  
  
"I do not know how you did it Fiona. I have tried it for years and she hasn't even thought twice about saying no," said Moonbay impress by what Fiona did. "She is a nice person, but she does her job seriously. All I did was work hard and I got her to do it for me. although she said that I was a special occasion and that she wouldn't do it for anyone else," said Fiona happily. "Bummer," said Moonbay upset to hear that part. "At least now you will be in my class," said Moonbay happily. "I bet Amy will be terribly disappointed to have me leave the class. I wonder if she had anything to do with me being put in that class four years in a row," said Fiona in deep thought. "Wouldn't surprise me if she did it just so she could pick on you because Prozen won't do anything to her," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. "I already knew that," said Fiona with a smile. "I bet that he will be just as ruthless even though you are out of his class now," said Moonbay a little nervous. "No. he will probably be worse," said Fiona with a shudder at the mere thought. "Starting tomorrow I will be free from Prozen," said Fiona happily. "You are definitely not going to regret doing this. The old man is really good at teaching when he actually makes sense of what he is talking about. Most of the time he talks way too complicated that it make it hard for us to be able to understand what he is talk about," said Moonbay with a laugh. "Plus we do a lot of fun projects," Moonbay continued. "I could hate it for all I care. Just as long as I am away from Prozen I am happy. If the class happened to be a fun class I am getting into then that is just an added bonus," said Fiona with a smile. "Time to have a little fun," said Moonbay grinning. "I am sure that it won't be a little but a lot more fun," said Fiona happily now that she was away from that horrid class.  
  
"Hey that is the same class that I am in," said Van later on in the day once Fiona had mentioned what she had managed to do. "Really?" asked Fiona happily. "Yeah. It is one of my favorites because I am actually able to relax a little in the class and not have Amy hanging all over me like she usually does," said Van with a slight chuckle. "Is his class really that fun?" asked Fiona curiously. "Sure. My favorite out of all of my classes," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders. "I am lucky that I didn't have Prozen for all of these years but I feel really bad for you," said Van with sympathy in his voice. "I am away from him now and that is all that matters," said Fiona happily. "Moonbay says that sometime this year that she is going to try to do something to him to make up for all of the detentions that he has given her and me in these fours years," said Fiona with a smile. "That is something that I would pay to see," said Van laughing at all the thoughts that were going through his head about what he thought might happen to Prozen. "I agree with Moonbay. He definitely needs to have something done to him. you aren't the only person he picks on. He has been picking on anyone that does even the slightest mistake so that he can have his fun. I have been on the receiving end of his punishments a number of times," said Van with a smirk. "I am curious as to what she is planning," said Fiona as she thought hard about it. "It had better be something really good because if it isn't then people that don't like him are going to be mad at her as well as myself," said Van. "Knowing Moonbay it is definitely something that if you knew it was going to happen, you would want to stay clear of anything that she might have gotten her hands on," said Fiona with a smile. "Wouldn't doubt it," said Van with a grin. "Moonbay can definitely be dangerous if she sets her mind on something like that. Hopefully I won't be a part of it because I am Amy's boyfriend," said Van hoping that it wouldn't happen. "I will see what I could do in a way that she wouldn't suspect something, but I can't promise anything," said Fiona grinning a bit at the thought. "No you wouldn't. You would probably help her," said Van a little offended. "Probably," said Fiona laughing a little. Van then grabbed a nearby pillow and threw it at Fiona. Fiona was laughing and she didn't see it and it hit her in the face. Van was laughing a little at this. Fiona was mad now but also a little amused at what he did. She then grabbed the pillow and threw it right back at him. This time he was the one that got hit in the face. "This means war," said Van with a laugh.  
  
"Hello, Mrs. Annette. I was wondering if Fiona was there," said Moonbay on the phone. "I am sorry but she is at a friends house, and by the time I don't think she will be home for a while," said Fiona's mother. "Ok thanks," said Moonbay as she hung up the phone. "Again? Why is it that Fiona never talks about this person yet she is almost always with this person when she is not with me? So why is it that I don't know who the person is?" Moonbay asked nobody. "I wonder if Irvine knows. He probably doesn't because most of the time when I ask a question that has to deal with it then he also ignores it or tried to change the subject. So I guess that he has to know," said Moonbay as she picked up the phone and dialed in Irvine's number.  
  
"Hello," said Irvine when he picked up the ringing phone. "Alright. You are going to answer a question that I have," Moonbay shouted into the phone. Irvine held the receiver away from his ear but it was still loud enough. 'Here comes that question again,' thought Irvine already knowing what Moonbay was going to ask him. "Who is this friend of Fiona's? I know that you know so don't you dare deny it, or try to change the subject because I know that you know who it is," yelled Moonbay. Irvine still had the receiver away from his ear yet he was able to hear what she had said very clearly. Irvine put the phone to his ear and trying to change his voice he said, "I am sorry but you must have the wrong number," said Irvine hoping that it would fool her. "Don't try and play tricks with me because I know for a fact that this is the right number," said Moonbay making Irvine pull the receiver away from his ear once again. Irvine cringed at his luck but he knew that this was something that was up to Fiona to tell Moonbay. "I can't tell you that. It is up to Fiona to tell you, and she isn't telling anyone. I only know because I happened to come across and V. and her friend," said Irvine hitting himself for almost giving it away. "What? Am I not a friend to her if she won't tell me?" asked Moonbay sounding very offended when she said this. "She has her reasons. If you want to know then just ask her. It is her decision if she wants you to know," said Irvine knowing his friend was slightly upset. "Fine I will ask her but not now. Right now I will keep an eye out for anything that will give me clues so that I now she can't lie if I guess right on who it is because it is easy to tell if she is lying most of the time. She never talks about it so that makes it so she isn't lying. I will figure it out though," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. Irvine gave a nervous chuckle knowing that it wasn't going to turn out too well.  
  
Fiona's eye slowly started to open. Taking one look around the room she realized that she was still at Van's place. She looked towards a window and realized that the sun was already coming up. The she felt someone's arm wrapped around her. It definitely frightened her a little bit. She turned her head and saw Van right next sleeping to her. 'We must have accidentally fallen asleep,' thought Fiona in a panic. She quickly got up. She was about to start walking towards the door to go home but she ended up looking back at Van who was sleeping very peacefully. She noticed a piece of hair had fallen in front of his face. She reached out and moved it aside. 'What the heck am I thinking?' Fiona asked her quickly pulling away. She quickly turned around and walked out of the door. Fiona quickly walked out of the house without seeing anybody. 'We just got exhausted with how much fun we were having. That has to be it,' Fiona told herself mentally as she walked down the street towards her home. 'Yeah. That is it. It is really nothing,' She told herself as she walked towards her house.  
  
Fiona had just enough time to go home and get dressed before she had to leave for school. 'If I happen to see Van today, then I just won't bring up what happened last night. It isn't like it meant anything,' Fiona told herself. For some reason Fiona could hear a voice in the back of her head saying, 'Denial.' "I am not. It meant nothing and I am sure of that. Van must think so as well if he even knows what had happened," she said. She just kept walking not really wanting to go back to school for some reason. She turned a corner and ran into Van. "Um, hi Van," said Fiona who was a little surprised by his sudden appearance. "Uh hi," said Van a little nervously. "Um Fiona. About last night," said Van looking at the ground. 'Wasn't he asleep when I left?' Fiona asked herself. "So you know," said Fiona a little nervously. "Yeah. I woke up to see you leaving my room this morning. It didn't really take me that long after that for me to be able to figure out what happened," said Van rubbing the back of his neck. "I see," said Fiona quietly. "It meant nothing. We just wore ourselves out because of the little pillow fight and then we accidentally fell asleep. Besides we are friends. So it shouldn't matter too much," said Fiona with a smile. "Yeah. You are right," said Van with a smile. The two then separated and went different ways to get to school. 'It was just an accident. I have to remember that,' Fiona told herself.  
  
"Where were you Van? I dropped by your house to give you a lift to school but you had already left. I drove around to find you on the normal route that you take but you weren't there either," said Amy with a small pout when Van had reached the school. "There was something that I needed to do so I was forced to take a different route. Is that a problem?" asked Van with a smile. "No. I suppose not," said Amy smiling back. "Good. Now I have to go or I will be late for class again," said Van as he started to walk off. "Hey. Wait up. We have the same homeroom. Don't you remember?" asked Amy laughing a little bit. "Oh yeah. I almost forgot," said Van with a slight chuckle. "I swear that at times you can be hopeless," said Amy as she reached up and kissed Van. "We had better hurry," said Van. "Hey wait look who it is," said Amy spotting Moonbay clearly waiting for Fiona. She then walked off. 'Not again,' thought Van with a sigh, as he knew what was about to happen.  
  
"About time that you got here Fiona," said Moonbay happily when Fiona walked into the school. "Yeah. I can't wait to see how today goes. I hope that it is going to be much better then yesterday," said Fiona happily. "It will trust me. It will be one of the best," said Moonbay happily. "I am sure that it will be," said Fiona with a smile. "It will be torture for the rest of us," came Amy's voice. "Then again everyday that you are here is torture," said Amy with a smirk on her face. "I think that you may have it the wrong way. Any day that you are around is a day of pure suffering," said Moonbay grinning right back at her. "In case you haven't realized. I am the popular one and you two are the losers," said Amy with the grin back on her face. "Nobody besides you and your friends have too much of a problem with us. There is a lot of people who have a big problem with you and your snot nosed attitude," said Moonbay making the grin on Amy's face go away. "I know you wish that that was true but we both know that it is wrong," said Moonbay walking. "Oh by the way I am sure that you will be upset to hear that you won't be able to pick on Fiona in your history class anymore because she was able to switch the class," yelled Moonbay after her. "Yeah. I am real upset at such wonderful news," said Amy sarcastically before she disappeared into their homeroom. "She really needs to get a reality check that the world doesn't revolve around her," said Moonbay angrily watching her retreating form for any sign that she wanted another round. "Calm down Moonbay. It does no good for you to do anything here," said Fiona in an attempt to calm Moonbay down. Moonbay just grunted. "Come on we have to get to class," said Moonbay trying to stay calm. She then calmly walked away leaving Fiona. "Hey, wait up for me," yelled Fiona running after her friend.  
  
"Welcome Fiona. I am happy that you somehow managed to get into my class," said Dr. D when Fiona came in for the first bell class. "I am happy to be here," said Fiona with a smile. "I wouldn't doubt it one bit. That Prozen is someone that gets on the nerves of most of us teachers as well as the students," said Dr. D with a smile. "You came at a good time too. If you sit down then I am going to tell you of what is going to be happening," said Dr. D with a smile. Fiona went and sat down in a seat next to Moonbay. She looked around and saw that Thomas and Irvine were in here as well as Van and Moonbay. "I know that it is only the second day of school but I have a project that I am sure most of you will have fun with," said Dr. D happily. "We are going to be working in groups of two for this," he continued. Moonbay immediately tried to pair up with her best friend Fiona for this. "Hold it Moonbay. I have chosen the partners that we are going to be having for this project," said Dr. D, which happened to upset many people in the room. "Alright. Here are the partners," said Dr. D as she started to name off different students and their partners. "Irvine. and Moonbay. Van. and Fiona," said Dr. D as he named off names on the list. Moonbay's eyes seemed to fly out of their sockets once she heard this. Many in the class gasped knowing that this was not going to be pretty with two enemies having to work with each other. Van's head shot up in shock of what he had just heard as wells as Fiona's. They just stared at each other in a way that made everyone think that they hated the mere thought about what they had to do but they were actually a bit happy about this. 


	9. fun and games

Everyone was silent after Dr. D made his selection of pairings. "Will someone please speak you are all starting to scare me," said Dr. D not liking how silent it was, especially since it was never quiet in that room. "Um sir. So you really think that it is such a smart idea to pair those two up," said a student indicating towards Van and Fiona. Everyone with half a brain in the school knew of the relationship that they had at school. Thought nobody knew of out of school. Dr. D looked at the two glaring at each other but ignored. "Just think of it as trying to settle rivalries," said Dr. D with a smirk on his face. "Plus they will have to work together in order to pass this project. If only one of them does it, and I will know if that happened. Then both of them will fail," said Dr. D with a smile. "I am well aware of their past history," said Dr. D when another student raised his hand. 'How little does he know about that,' thought Van keeping his aggravated look on his face. "I don't want to work with her," said Van pointing towards to Fiona. 'I have to keep up appearances,' thought Van. "Whether you want to or not is not an option Mr. Flyheight. You two are dependant on each other for this project. So you had better get used to it," said Dr. D returning to his desk. "But," said Van trying to make it look like he was desperate to not have to do this. "No buts Van. You either do this or you will receive an F for this project," said Dr. D with a smirk on his face. Van sat back down in his with an angry sigh.  
  
"Hey there honey. I bet your class was just horrible now that you have that horrible woman in it," said Amy in a fake sad voice. Van had on an angry look and turned away. "What's wrong? Did she do something to you?" asked Amy a little startled that Van just turned away from her. "Dr. D has a project going and guess who he decided to partner me up with?" said Van wanting to see the expression that came across his face. "HE WHAT?" screamed Amy. Everyone that was in the hallway looked in their direction trying to see what was going on. "Calm down you are making a bit of a scene," said Van seeing all of the people that were looking at the two of them. "He has no right to do something like that. When I get my hands on him," said Amy making her hand move in a way that it looked like she was choking someone. "Now, now. You don't want to do that. Unless you want to get kicked out of school," said Van nervously. 'Sometimes she can be a bit scary,' thought Van with a nervous grin. "That won't happen because my father won't allow something like that to happen," said Amy in a calmer voice. Van rolled his eyes without her noticing. "Please don't tell me you have to do this," said Amy in a said voice. "I have to or I get an F," said Van calmly. "How can you be so calm about this?" asked Amy a bit furiously. "I just think how much I can torture her with this," said Van with a smile. "I see what you are getting at,' said Amy with a smile as she kissed van. 'You have no idea,' thought Van while she was kissing him.  
  
"Why are you so happy about what just happened?" asked Moonbay looking at a smiling Fiona. "It is because of Amy. what else would it be? Just thinking about how mad she must be about this is somehow making me happy about it," said Fiona with a smile. "I get what you are saying now. I must admit that this is definitely something that sounds very good right now. A sudden yelling could be heard going through the halls. "I guess she just found out what happened. Too bad I couldn't be there to see her face. Then again maybe it was a good thing because she might take her frustration out on me," said Moonbay with a very large smirk on her face. "By the sounds of it she isn't too happy," said Fiona a little worried. "Of course she isn't. Looks like you will have your hands full for the rest of the day, maybe even a few days after that. I would love to help you out with her but I have a project that needs to get done," said Moonbay before walking away from Fiona. Fiona was about to close her locker and walk away when she saw a steamed Amy walking towards her. 'I knew that it would end up leading to this. Why do I usually have to be right about most things?' Fiona asked herself with a sigh. "I heard that you had to do a project with my boyfriend," said Amy with a little anger in her voice. "Believe me, if I had the choice I would rather do it with somebody else. Anyone would be better then him," said Fiona trying to get around Amy but she just stepped in the way. "I am warning you that if you make him fail this that I will make your life hell," said Amy with a wicked smirk. "A little late for that don't you think?" asked Fiona a little annoyed by how Amy was acting. "You haven't seen anything yet. I can make it far worse then it is at this moment," said Amy walking by Fiona while making sure to hit her. A few of the things that Fiona was carrying fell to the floor and she picked them up quickly and walked away. 'What a pain,' thought Fiona with a sigh. 'Oh well. Now I have a reason to be around Van,' she thought happily.  
  
"What was the project that we are supposed to be doing again?" asked Van with his head down on his desk pretending not to be having a good time around Fiona. I truth he was having a great time. "For the tenth time we are supposed to be choosing one event in history and we are supposed to make a collage for it," said Fiona a little annoyed because Van had been asking the same question for the past ten minutes now. "Sorry for asking. I just forgot," said Van holding his hands out in front of him in his own defense. "You have also forgotten it for the past ten times that I have told you it," said Fiona with a little annoyance and a little amusement in her voice that only Van could pick up. "Well maybe I would understand it better if someone else told me, because you are making it way too complicated," said Van for the fun of it to keep up appearances. "It is in no way complicated. Maybe your brain is just a little too dense to be able to pick up on anything I am trying to say. Listen a little bit and maybe you would understand it better," Fiona yelled at him. The entire class looked at the two of them. The two noticed and sat down quietly. At his desk Dr. D looked at the two of them and chuckled a little bit. 'Those two can really get at each other's throats. This is the best way to try and create a little peace between enemies. That would be the case if they were even enemies. They may fool everyone else but they cannot fool me. I have had them for the past four years in homeroom and I have picked up a few things that no one else has been able to see,' thought Dr. D with another chuckle. Everyone else was now looking at him because they had heard his chuckling. "What?" asked Dr. D looking at every student in the class that was looking at him as if he was a bit demented. "You act as if it is funny that they are about to tear out each others throats," said Moonbay a little confused by his actions. Irvine could barely hold his laughter back as well. 'I have a feeling that the old man knows more then he is letting on. even if he doesn't say anything about it,' thought Irvine with a smirk on his face. "I have no idea what you are talking about Moonbay," said Dr. D with an innocent look on his face. Moonbay was about to say something before he stopped her. "Are you going to continue talking or are you going to get back to work?" asked Dr. D with a smile. Moonbay sighed and sat back down next to Irvine.  
  
"Where's the glue?" asked Van looking around the table for the little tube. Yet there was nothing there for him to be able to use. "I don't know. You were the last one to use it," muttered Fiona with a small smile. "Where did you put the glue?" she asked hiding the small smirk growing on her face. "I haven't used any yet. You had to have done something with it. So where did you put it?" asked Van putting an emphasis on the word you. "I didn't get any because I thought you had it," said Fiona with a playful glare but a harsher tone. "Great! You forgot to get us glue and now it is all gone," said Van noticing the case that the glue was normally in was now empty. "You were the one that was supposed to get the glue and a few other supplies while I grabbed the rest of the supplies," said Fiona a little annoyed. "No it was you that was supposed to grab the glue," Van said in a little higher of a voice then he meant to use. "Forget it," said Van with a sigh, "You can't be trusted to do a lot of things," said Van turning around. He turned around to face Thomas and his partner. "Can I borrow your glue?" asked Van in an boring voice. Fiona felt like chuckling a little. "No you cannot borrow it," said Thomas a little annoyed at Van at how he had been treating Fiona. "Can I borrow it?" asked Fiona nicely as she turned around to face him with a smile on her face. "Of course you can," said Thomas smiling back as he handed the glue to Fiona. "Thank you," said Fiona taking it and turning back around. She looked at Van and stuck her tongue out at him. He growled and turned back around and sat back down in his seat. Unfortunately she wasn't able to use it because the bell then rang. "Alright class. No homework tonight. Be ready to get to work immediately tomorrow. You have until the end of the bell the day after tomorrow," said Dr. D with a smile as students raced out of the room not even listening to them. "Why do I bother? Oh well it will be their faults if they don't get it done on time," said Dr. D with a smirk on his face as the last of the students left the room.  
  
"Alright everybody takes your spots because we are about to start our first activity for the year," said their gym teacher Crougar. "What would that be old man?" asked Van in his normal way because he calls Crougar that a lot and everyone seemed to have gotten used to it. "We are going to be playing volleyball first," said Crougar choosing to ignore the rude name that Van had called him. "I have already chosen teams for this," said Crougar before anyone could try to make their own teams. "These will be three on three matched and will be held in a tournament format," said Crougar trying to explain how things were going to go. "This is new. I haven't been able to play volleyball in gym class for a while. He hasn't done it at all since I came to this high school," said Fiona with a smile. "Today we will just be having practice games to get ready for it," said Crougar as he pulled his clipboard in front of his face. "The first team is Fiona, Moonbay, and Irvine. the second team will be Van, Amy, and Emily," said Crougar as he continued to name off the rest of the teams. Amy was excited because Emily was one of her best friends. "We are going to cream everyone," said Amy happily. "Especially your team," said Amy pointing towards Fiona. "team one and team two will be on court 1, team three and four will be on court two, and team five and team six will be on court three," said Crougar, and with a blow of his whistle everyone was walking to their designated court. Amy had on a smirk because she was really good at volleyball and felt that this would be an easy victory. Amy smiled happily as her, Van, and her friend Emily walked to one side of the court. While Fiona, Irvine, and Moonbay walked to the other side of the court. "Tell em Fiona. How will it feel to face a real winner in this? I have won several volleyball tournament, and I have never lost a game," said Amy with a smirk. "You are so going to go down," said Amy smirking even more. Van just groaned at how much she was bragging. Even her friend Emily couldn't help but groan as well at her friend. "A little cocky are we?" asked an annoyed Moonbay the bragging Amy. Amy just smirked and responded. "You may be a fairly good player but I am simply better then all three of you put together," said Amy with the ever- present smirk. Fiona remained quiet during the entire conversation. Moonbay noticed this too. "Please ay you are good at this Fiona. I really want to beat her," Moonbay whispered into Fiona's ear. Fiona didn't have any time to reply because Crougar blew the whistle for them to start.  
  
No one's attention seemed to be on their own game. Everyone was more interested on the game that was about to start between the two people that hate each other more then anything else. Everyone was aware of Amy's skill at volleyball but no one had ever seen Fiona play. For all they knew she could be good at it or be horrible. It would all come down to this game to decide. Crougar didn't pay attention to anything else either because he had to make sure that that one game remained civilized knowing the past of one player on each team with each other. Amy's team got the ball first to serve. "You know Amy I seem to remember that trip to the beach our freshman year and the volleyball game between Raven and Reese," said Fiona without an emotion on her face. "Oh yeah, I remember that. Didn't she get smacked in the face with the ball?" asked Moonbay with a laugh just remembering what happened. "I had a bad day and you threw off my concentration. Besides, I am ten times better then back then," said Amy in her own cocky way. "Sure, sure. I am sure that you are," said Moonbay barely being able to control her laughing. Fiona almost broke out laughing as well. "Can we get started already before it is time for us to go to our next class?" asked a slightly annoyed Van because they were making it so that they couldn't play the game. "Of course sweetie," said Amy in a nice voice. Moonbay was making gagging noises upon hearing this. Van ignored that and served the ball. It went flawlessly over the net. Irvine was already at it and hit it back over the net right at Amy who hit it hard at the ground on the other side of the net. It was near Fiona but she wasn't able to get it in time. "One point us. Zero points you," said Amy in a happy voice because she was already beating Fiona and it was only the first minute. Van took the ball again and sent it over. It then came towards Fiona. "Better look out because she is going to miss it,' yelled Amy as the ball was coming towards Fiona. This didn't bother Fiona, in fact she only smiled. The ball was coming down fast and before anyone could realize what had just happened, the ball was on the ground on Amy's side of the court. Fiona stood there happily with a smile on her face looking at the confused Amy. "How are my skills for you?" asked Fiona in a happy voice. Amy was speechless but in an instant a determined look came across her face. "You'll pay for that," said Amy but she couldn't do anything. "Go get changed everyone," said Crougar signaling that the class was over. "Let's go Fiona before things really start to heat up," said Moonbay pulling the happy Fiona to the locker room.  
  
"That was totally awesome Fiona. why didn't you tell me that you were good at volleyball?" asked a happy Moonbay. "No one bothered to ask me," said Fiona with a mere shrug of her shoulders. "That was great though. did you see the look on her face? That was a priceless picture," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. "So are you going to be coming with me tonight to the movies?" asked Moonbay with a smile. "No, I want to get some work done on my project," said Fiona in a calm tone. "Oh ok?" said a slightly disappointed Moonbay. "Well if you change your mind you know where you can find me," said Moonbay with a smile as they walked towards their next class. With Fiona's new schedule they were basically in all of the same classes together for the year. "On second thought. I have all of the time during class for the next two days to get it done. So I guess I will come," said Fiona not wanting to disappoint her friend. "Great! Me and Irvine will pick you up at six," said Moonbay with a smile. "Ok then. I will be ready then," said Fiona smiling as well. Fiona could have sworn at that second that she had heard her name being whispered. She tried to ignore it but I came again. "Um Moonbay. Go on ahead. There is something that I have to do," said Fiona with a smile. "Ok. Make sure that you are not late for class though," said Moonbay as she walked ahead of Fiona.  
  
Fiona took a look around and saw that the hallways were completely empty. "Hey Fiona," came Van's voice. Fiona looked an saw Van's head by an empty classroom. "Listen. I need to ask you a favor," said Van as Fiona walked into the room. "Sure. What is it?" asked Fiona with a smile. "Do you think I can hide out at your place today?" asked Van looking around to make sure no one was listening or watching. "Why?" asked Fiona with a confused look on her face. "She hasn't asked me but Amy is trying to get me to come to something with her family but I really have no interest in going. I overheard her telling that to one of her friends. Also knowing her when she is in a bad mood like right now I will have no choice but to do what she says. So I have to hide from her for the rest of the day. So can I please hide at your house until later?" asked Van in a begging voice. "I guess. Or maybe you can see if Irvine can drag you along with us," said Fiona after thinking it over. "Wouldn't that be suspicious if I am with some people I am supposed to hate?" asked Van with a confused look on his face. "Just say Irvine invited you before you knew that we were coming. I can talk to him to see if you can come," said Fiona with a smile. "That would be great. Thank you," said Van in a thankful voice. "Come on. we have to get going before the bell rings," said Fiona walking quickly out of the room. Van waited a few seconds before doing the same happy to see that the hallway was empty at the moment.  
  
"Hey Irvine," said Fiona quietly into Irvine's ear. "What?" asked Irvine looking away from the teacher that was currently speaking. "Do you think you can drag Van along with us tonight? Amy wants him to go with her somewhere and he doesn't want to. So I figure we can take him along and make it look like he didn't know that me and Moonbay were coming," whispered Fiona into his ear. "Sure. I guess I can. I would be better I guess to have someone besides girls around," said Irvine with a slight smirk on his face. "What's that supposed to mean?" asked an annoyed Fiona. "I am just kidding. Sure he can come. I will just have to find an excuse with Moonbay," said Irvine with a smile before turning back to the teacher. Fiona turned slightly to the bored Van. Van noticed this and looked but not too much. Fiona nodded her head and Van gave off a sigh of relief. 'Thank you god,' thought van knowing he would be safe. He then turned back around and started to listen to the teachers boring lesson again. 'All I have to do is get through today without seeing her and I will be home free,' thought Van happily.  
  
"What time was it that you were going to be picking me up again?' Fiona asked Irvine while they waited for Moonbay to get finished in the classroom because she was running a little late. "Six. Just make sure that you are ready by then or else we will be leaving," said Irvine with a sigh. "Right. I will remember that," said Fiona with a smile. It was then that they saw a very strange sight. A very paranoid looking Van was sneaking around the side of the building. "What are you doing?" asked a confused Irvine scaring the heck out of Van. Van put a finger up to his lips to signal for Irvine to be quiet. "I am trying to get away from Amy. Even if I am busy she will still drag me along so I have to get out of here before she finds me," said Van looking around the place. Irvine felt like laughing at his paranoid friend. "Oh Van," came the annoying voice of Amy. Van freaked out and ran as far away as he could. A few moments later Amy came into view. "Irvine. Have you seen Van? I have to ask him something important," said Amy making sure to glare at Fiona while she was doing this. "Nope. Haven't seen him since our last class," said Irvine without caring that he was lying to her. "Well if you see him tell him I am looking for him," said Amy till glaring at Fiona as she walked off. "Like I would do such a thing. Although it might be a little fun to see him squirm a little bit," said Irvine as an afterthought. Fiona elbowed him in the stomach for that. "I was only kidding," said a short-winded Irvine. "I know," said Fiona with a smile before she walked off in the direction of her house. Irvine stared at her retreating form in disbelief. "She is a weird one alright," Irvine muttered to himself as he tried to catch his breath. "I am surprised that it took you that long to figure that one out," came Moonbay's voice. "What were you two talking about to make her do that to you?" asked Moonbay with a slight chuckle. "I only made a joke and she did that knowing it was only a joke," said Irvine standing up straight. Moonbay just chuckled a little bit more. "We had better get home to get ready for tonight," said a still chuckling Moonbay as she walked in one direction. Irvine sighed and then walked off in the other direction.  
  
Fiona went through everything she had with Moonbay right by her trying to pick out what to wear. "How about this? No," said Fiona tossing clothes after clothes off to the side. "Why are you getting so worked up about going to a movie?" Moonbay asked with a little suspicion in her voice. "I am not getting worked up over. I just want to look nice," said Fiona throwing aside another outfit. "Whatever," muttered Moonbay as she laid back on Fiona's bed. 'Why am I?' Fiona asked herself. 'I am not trying to impress anyone,' thought Fiona curious as to her behavior. 'Van' a voice in the back of her head told her. 'I am not doing this for Van,' thought Fiona with a shake of her head. "Something wrong?" asked Moonbay sitting back up after seeing Fiona shaking her head. "No. I was just thinking about something," said Fiona with a smile on her face. "About what?" asked Moonbay a little curiously. "It is nothing. Just random things. It really doesn't matter," said Fiona finally picking an outfit and putting it on. "About time. Irvine is about to get here," muttered Moonbay standing up. "You and Irvine seem to be awfully close Moonbay," said Fiona with an amuse stare. "Wh-what do you mean?" asked Moonbay blushing slightly. "You two seem to do a lot of things together. Are you two starting to have feelings for each other?" asked Fiona with a smirk on her face. "Of-of course not. Why the heck would we have feelings for each other? It is the most absurd thing that I have ever heard," muttered Moonbay who was a red as a tomato. Moonbay could hear Fiona chuckling a little bit. "What?" asked a very confused Moonbay. "Your face is a red as a tomato," said Fiona before she broke out laugh. "No it isn't," said Moonbay looking in the mirror to prove her wrong. She was very red though. "I am just fooling around with you Moonbay. There is no need to go overboard with it," said Fiona still giggling every few words. Moonbay glared at her before standing up and marching out the door. Fiona stared at her for a few seconds before she heard Moonbay's voice. "Are you coming? Irvine's here waiting for us," said Moonbay from the other side of the door. Fiona looked out the window and saw that Moonbay was right. Irvine was waiting for them right in front of the house waiting for them. "Hey! Wait up," yelled Fiona running after Moonbay since she already had a head start.  
  
"Um Irvine," said Moonbay noticing the direction that they were going. "Yeah?" asked Irvine from the drivers seat. "Aren't the movie theaters the other way?" asked Moonbay looking at the road behind them. "Yeah it is," said Irvine not trying to stop and turn around. "Then why are we going this way?" asked Moonbay looking at Irvine with a very curious stare. "I am picking someone up. I don't want any complaints about it either," said Irvine staring at Moonbay before quickly turning his head back to the road. "Who?" asked Moonbay having a feeling that she wasn't going to like the answer to it. "Van," was all Irvine said before he expected Moonbay to yell at him. "Why him?" asked Moonbay looking at him suspiciously. "I am doing him a favor. I already told him and Fiona and they both agreed not to argue for tonight," said Irvine seeing that Moonbay looked at Fiona. "As long as the two don't ruin it then I have no problem with it. Just one thing though," said Moonbay looking back to Irvine. "What's that?" asked Irvine keeping his eyes on the road. "What about his girlfriend?" asked Moonbay a little annoyed just thinking about it. "Luckily she is not coming. Van needed a night away from her, so I offered to help him get away," said Irvine calmly. "You are awfully calm about all of this," said Irvine noticing how calm Moonbay was. "Van's cool at times. He just got a bad personality after he started to date Amy," said Moonbay with disgust in her voice. "Oh yeah, that right. You two were once friends," said Irvine remembering Moonbay telling him something along those lines. "If he ditches Amy then I would be happy to be friends with him again, but not until he does," said Moonbay turning in her seat and looking at the road in front of them. 'Like that will happen anytime soon,' thought Fiona sadly just thinking about what Van was forced to do. "No arguing. You got that Fiona?" asked Moonbay with a serious look on her face. "Yes," muttered Fiona as she just stared out the window.  
  
"Get in already," yelled Moonbay once they had reached Van's house a few minutes after their little talk. "Get this straight Van. If you are going to be with us for this there is going to be no arguing and you have to leave your snot nosed personality at your house," said Moonbay in a threatening voice. Van sank backing his seat out of fear. He just nodded his head a little scared of the woman in front of him. "Good," said Moonbay happily. "As long as you do then we will have a good time," she continued happily. 'That girl has way too many different personalities,' thought Van with a cheesy smile. "Are you done yet Moonbay?" asked Irvine seeing Moonbay sit back down in her seat. "Yes I am," said Moonbay with a smile. "Good. I already talked to the two of them. They already know how they are supposed to act and what the consequences will be if they do," said Irvine with a smirk. "What would the consequences be?" asked Moonbay curiously. "They will have no ride home. I am sure that they will be on their best behavior though. am I right?" asked Irvine looking at the two of them. The two just nodded their head dully. "good. Now that that is settled we are off," said Irvine stepping on the gas pedal and taking off.  
  
"Are you a maniac or something?" yelled Moonbay once they had reached the theater. She was holding the area around her heart as it thumped wildly in her chest. "Sorry about that. I thought that it might be a little fun," said Irvine with a smile. "I am surprised that no police pulled you over for that. I am also surprised that we didn't crash. If you ever do that again I will personally make sure that you are going to be severely punished," yelled Moonbay into Irvine's ear. She was mad because of how fast he had been going to get there. Van and Fiona just stood off to the side watching the two without saying a word at all. Their eyes moved back and forth between the two as each one of them took turns speaking or in Moonbay's case, yelling. Neither of them wanted to say anything either because they were afraid of being on the end of her yelling when she finished with Irvine. "Now, now you two. We know that you like each other but there is no need to argue like an old married couple," said Van stepping with a smirk on his face. "Since when did you start acting like your old self?" asked a confused Moonbay noticing his personality was nothing like it had been for a while now. "Wouldn't you like to know," said Van turning around and walking towards the entrance to the theater. "That was a little freaky," said Moonbay watching him walk away. Irvine and Fiona looked at each other with Moonbay seeing and just smiled. 'You'll probably find out at some point but not right now Moonbay,' thought Irvine with a smile on his face. 'Sorry about not telling you the truth Moonbay?' thought Fiona still smiling.  
  
"Now where did those two go?" asked Moonbay once they had paid to get in and now they were ready to watch the movie but they noticed Van and Fiona weren't with them. "I saw Fiona heading to the restroom and Van stopping to get some snacks. He will probably get some for only himself so I will go and grab some for us," said Irvine standing up. "I'll just wait here because I don't have to go," said Moonbay remaining seated. "Fine with me," said Irvine walking towards the doors that led out to the lobby. Upon walking out to it, he saw Van and Fiona were already walking towards him and talking. "Moonbay was wondering about you," said Irvine leaning on the wall by the door. "What did you say?" asked Van holding a small popcorn most likely for only himself. "I told her that Fiona went to the restroom and you were getting snacks which you could have been nice enough to get us some," said Irvine with a fake disappointed look. "I only had enough money for myself. I am sorry," said Van holding his hands in front of him in his defense. "It's ok. I used an excuse with that thought in mind anyways to come and see what the two of you were up to," said Irvine with a smirk on his face. "Just talking since no one that we knew was around," said Van with a smile. "I see. Do you two know that Moonbay is trying to figure out who you are Van?" asked Irvine staring at Van. "She already know me though," said Van a little confused. "No, I mean that she is trying to find out your identity," said Irvine seriously. "Like I said before she already knows who I am," said Van in an exasperated voice. "No! She is trying o find out who Fiona's friend is, which also happens to be you," said Irvine with every last bit of patience gone in his voice. "Oh, that. I knew," said Van with a sigh. "Moonbay is a good friend, but for now I just want to keep it between us. You wouldn't even know right now if you hadn't seen us when you first came here," said Fiona with an upset tone in her voice. "You should tell her at some point. She knows that I know who it is and is upset that she is being left out of it," said Irvine seriously. "Are you looking after Moonbay?" asked Van with slyness in his voice. "N-n-no. you don't under stand what I am talking about," stuttered Irvine. "Sure we don't," said an unconvinced Van. "I am just saying that I don't think that it is very fair for her," said Irvine. "I would feel that way too if I was the one that was left out of it," said Irvine with sadness in his voice. "Sounds like you care for her," said Fiona with a small smile. Irvine blushed a little bit. "What do you know!" yelled Irvine before storming off towards the concession stand. "He didn't need to yell at us. Oh well. At least now we know the truth," said Van with a grin on his face as Fiona walked into the room, and then he went too about a minute after that.  
  
'God what a boring movie,' thought Van as he sat in his seat with his chin in his right hand. He then let out a loud yawn. 'Going with Amy might have been better then being bored all night,' he thought but that didn't make him feel any better. 'On second thought, maybe not,' thought Van knowing that he would most likely be even more bored at one of her parents extremely boring parties. 'Last time I went to one of those I fell asleep within the first ten minutes. Amy definitely wasn't happy about that,' thought Van with a very slight smile. Van looked down towards Irvine and Moonbay and it looked like they were getting closer to each other. He nearly laughed when he saw this. Fiona looked towards him at that moment from the other end of the row. She saw that he was holding back his laughter. He saw her and pointed towards the row in front of them, which held Moonbay and Irvine. Now Moonbay had her head on Irvine's shoulder. Fiona had to hold her mouth closed to avoid laughing. The movie then started to roll its credits and Fiona and Van were both very thankful. They stood up but Irvine and Moonbay didn't. "Are you coming?" asked Van, but they still didn't move. Van walked up to them and burst out laughing. He signaled for Fiona to see what he was looking at. She walked over and saw that Irvine and Moonbay had both fallen asleep. "Great! Now how are we going to get home? When those two sleep they will never get up until they are ready," said an annoyed Fiona. "Really?" asked Van. He then decided to test that theory. He took Irvine by the shoulders and shook him rapidly but it had no effect because he was still asleep. "Wake up!" Van yelled into his ear. There was no movement then. Van sighed in defeat and started to walk towards the exit. "Looks like we are walking home. Good thing that it isn't too far away. We only need to drive because we needed to hurry. Though at the moment being late for this would have been a lot better," said Fiona walking after him.  
  
Night had long since come to the sky by the time that they had walked out of the movie theater. The sky was pitch-black since it was the night of the new moon. They probably wouldn't be able to see where they were going if it hadn't been for the very dim light from the street lamps. Even then it was still hard. Van kept hitting things by accident like cracks, fire hydrants, and once he even a wall by accident because he was unable to see where he was going very well. "You know, I think that it might have been better if we had just stayed and waited for the to wake up rather then just decide to walk," said Fiona tripping slightly on a small crack. "Either that or we could have grabbed Irvine and Moonbay and then we could throw them in the back of their car and drive off," said Van with a slight laugh. "That might not have been such a bad idea. To bad we are already about half way home. We could have tried it if we weren't," said Van laughing again and this time Fiona joined him. "I wonder what they would have thought if they had woken up in the back of their car to see that especially since neither of us have a license yet," said Fiona with an amused laugh. "Irvine would probably be really mad and Moonbay would probably be amused at the situation," said Van after a short time of thinking about it. "Wouldn't surprise me," said Fiona with a smile. The two of them then laughed again.  
  
They continued to walk for a number of more minutes in the dark streets. Van then noticed something. "Looks like the lights are starting to get a little brighter up ahead," said Van noticing a brighter lit area. "Good because I am tired of kicking things by accident," said Fiona rubbing her foot. "At least you didn't run into a wall," said Van with a slight laugh as he rubbed his sore head. "Yeah. I guess I can be thankful that I wasn't stupid enough to do that," said Fiona trying to tease Van a little. "Stupid am I?" asked van with a mischievous look on his face. Fiona suddenly found herself on the ground laughing her head off. Van was tickling her and she just couldn't help but laugh at it. "Van. please. stop," said Fiona whenever she could get a chance through all of the laughing. "What am I?" asked Van not relenting on his onslaught of tickling. Fiona continued to laugh. "You're. not. stupid," said Fiona through all of her laughing. "That better," said Van happily as he stopped tickling her. Fiona smiled and tackled van doing the exact same thing that he did to her. "Alright, alright. I give up," said van when Fiona didn't stop it. Fiona stopped but remained seated on his stomach where she was while she was tickling him. She just smiled. She looked down into his eyes and she seemed captivated by them. 'What the heck am I thinking?' Fiona asked herself with a shake of her head which Van didn't see. He did however see her staring at him for a second. 'What is she looking at? Oh well probably nothing. Why isn't she getting up though?' Van asked himself. "Um, Fiona. do you think that you can get off of me so that I can get up?" asked Van with a slight blush on his face because of their position. Fiona seemed to just realize what she was doing and got off of him blushing as well. Van got off the ground and dusted himself off. "Come on. Lets get home before it gets too late because I am starting to get tired," said Van with a smile as the two of them started to walk again in the much brighter area.  
  
Long after Fiona had gotten home Van walked through the door to his own home. "Where have you been?" asked his father from the table in their living room trying to get some work done. "Irvine and Moonbay fell asleep during the movie so me and Fiona had to walk home. I made sure that she got home before I came back," said Van calmly as he walked towards the stairs. Before he could reach it the phone rang. His father picked it up and an annoyed expression crossed his face. "It's for you Van," said his father handing Van the phone. "Hello?" asked Van a little nervously having a feeling that he knew who it was. "Where the hell have you been? I have been trying to get in touch with you all day but I haven't been able to find you," yelled Amy through the phone. "I had a lot of work to do. Then I went somewhere with Irvine," said Van knowing that it was the truth. His work was trying to avoid her so he wouldn't have to go to the boring party and he really was with Irvine. Sure he left out a few details like Moonbay and Fiona being there as well but what she didn't know couldn't hurt her. "Oh ok. For a while I thought that you were trying to avoid me," said Amy a little less angrier but she was still angry. "My parents were holding something that you were supposed to come with me to!" she once again started to yell. "Oh I am sorry. If I knew I wouldn't have made plans," Van said with a nervous chuckle. "You had better be. I will forgive you this time but next time you are going to come with me to it," yelled Amy over the phone. "Well I will see you tomorrow," said Amy happily as the phone hung up.  
  
Van just stood there holding the phone for a few minutes after she hung up. When he did hang up the phone he was thinking, 'she sure does change her mood very easily,' thought Van thinking how she had been angry most of the call and then she became all happy in the end. "I'll never understand her," said Van with a sigh. "Why couldn't you get a quieter girlfriend? I could hear her yelling all the way over here," said Van father from the table. "It's complicated," said Van with a nervous look on his face. "Why couldn't you have one like Fiona? She is nice, quiet, and will to help others. Plus she doesn't yell at people immediately after they pick up the phone without figuring out who they are first," said his Dan because that is what Amy did only a few moments ago. "Wh-what?" asked a shocked Van. "never mind," said his father closing the books that were in front of him and he started to walk up the stairs. "You had better get to bed it is a school day tomorrow and you don't want to get in trouble for falling asleep in it again," said Dan as he walked up the stairs. Van soon followed.  
  
Van just laid there in bed trying to get to sleep. He felt himself growing tired but before he could fall asleep the phone rang yet again. Van took one guess who it was this time. "About time you woke up Irvine," said a tired Van through the phone. "How the heck could you just leave us there?" yelled Irvine. 'What is with people and yelling at me today?' Van asked himself. "Why didn't you wake me up?" yelled Irvine. "We tried several times but you wouldn't wake up. Neither of us have a license yet so we just decided to walk home," said Van because he was tired and wanted to get to bed. Irvine seemed speechless since he didn't have a comeback for what Van said. "If that is all that you have to say then I am hanging up," said Van. He was about to but Irvine said something. "Is Fiona alright?" asked Irvine like a big brother. "Yeah. I made sure that she got home before I came here," said Van with a yawn. "Now I am hanging up so that I can actually get some sleep," said Van hanging up the phone. He laid back down with a smile, happy that he was actually going to be getting some sleep, but the phone rang yet again. Van snapped. He picked up the phone and yelled, "WHAT!" into it. He heard a squeak from the other sound like someone jumping in shock. He somehow recognized it as Fiona. "I'm sorry," said Van quietly through the phone. "I-it's ok," stuttered a slightly shocked Fiona. "I am just not getting a lot of sleep. People keep calling to keep me up. First my dad stopped me from going upstairs to go to sleep and then Amy called the next moment. The while I was trying to get to sleep Irvine called yelling at me for leaving them behind," said Van in a tired voice. "S-sorry for bugging you then," said Fiona still a bit startled. "It's ok. Is something wrong?" asked Van noticing the time. "No," said Fiona. "Then why are you calling at this time?" asked a confused Van looking at his alarm clock to see that it was about Midnight at that moment. "I don't know. Sorry for waking you," said Fiona and then the phone hung up. "That was strange," said Van with the phone still in his hand.  
  
Fiona hung up the phone in haste. "Why was it that I called him?" she asked herself especially since she knew what the time was. "I just don't get it," she said to herself as she laid down on her bed and closed her eyes. "I suddenly had this urge to call him. I don't know why that is," she murmured to herself as she felt her eyes start to grow heavy with sleep. "He is one of my best friends but why did I have this urge to call him in the middle of the night when I knew that he would be asleep," she said to herself. Then she fell into a light slumber.  
  
Fiona seemed to be walking in a daze for most of the walk to the school the next morning. She was in such a daze that she didn't notice that Moonbay had found her as was walking beside her. "Hey there Fiona," said Moonbay a little happy despite the fact that Fiona had left her and Irvine at the movie theaters even if they were the ones that had the car at that time. Fiona didn't even seem to respond. This surprised Moonbay because Fiona didn't even acknowledge her presence. A grin then came to Moonbay's face. Leaning over towards Fiona she screamed, "Fiona," as loud as she could into Fiona's ear. Moonbay was laughing more then she had laughed in for a while when she saw how high Fiona seemed to jump into the air. "Don't scare me like that Moonbay," said Fiona clutching her chest. "Payback for leaving us at the theater," said Moonbay with a smirk. "Why are you complaining if you had the car? I was the one that had to walk all the way back to my house," said Fiona in an annoyed voice. "I don't know," said Moonbay with a shrug of her shoulders. Fiona just rolled her eyes. "So what's up? You seemed to be walking a quite a daze," said Moonbay looking at Fiona. "I was?" asked Fiona as if she didn't even know that she was doing that. "Yeah. I said hey and you didn't even seem to respond. No noise, you didn't even flinch. I was wondering if you had lost your soul and were just a walking corpse," said Moonbay with a slight laugh. "I didn't know I was doing that. I guess since I know I was doing that was because I guess I just have a lot on my mind," said Fiona with a small smile. "Is that so? Oh well. Why did you leave if you knew that it would be dangerous to walk alone at that time of night?" asked Moonbay curiously getting back on the subject of the theaters. "I ran into a friend and he walked me home," said Fiona knowing that it wasn't the full truth but it also wasn't lying. "Is this the one that you hang around with a lot?" asked Moonbay with peeked interest. Fiona just nodded her head. "Rats, and I was hoping to see him sometime," muttered Moonbay thinking she missed her chance. "Sp, who is it?" asked Moonbay with a smile on her face. "Sorry but I can't tell you," said Fiona seriously as she walked a little faster to escape Moonbay before she asked too many questions. "Ah. Come on," yelled Moonbay running to catch up to Fiona.  
  
It was about a minute before she managed to catch Fiona again. "Why can't you tell me? Am I now that good of a friend if you won't tell me?" asked Moonbay with a pout on her face. "It is not that. I guess it is just complicated," said Fiona with a frown. "What? Is it someone like Van, and you have to keep it a secret from Amy or something?" asked Moonbay with a laugh. "Of course not," said Fiona somehow managing to mask how nervous she was about Moonbay saying something like that. "Yeah. You're right. No friends can argue as bad as you two can even in some of the worst of times," said Moonbay with a laugh. "How could I have even thought of something like that?" asked Moonbay with another laugh. 'You have no idea how right you are,' thought Fiona with a sheepish smile. "You two must be very close with how much time you spend together," said Moonbay. "Do you love him? Is that why you spend so much time with him?" asked Moonbay with a smile. 'I don't love Van,' thought Fiona with a strange look on her face. "You do, don't you?" asked Moonbay seeing the look on Fiona's face. "No I don't," said Fiona with a weak hearted laugh. "Whatever you say. Come on we had better hurry or we will be late for class," said Moonbay running ahead of Fiona and a moment later Fiona followed behind. 


	10. fiona's feelings

Moonbay and Fiona skidded through the door at just the last moment as the bell rung to signal the beginning of school. "Wow. We just barely made it," muttered Moonbay as she tried to catch her breath after the running that they had just done. They quietly walked to their seats. A rough voice stopped them though. "You're late," came the cruel voice of Prozen Moonbay audibly groaned upon hearing his voice. 'Oh no. Not him,' thought Moonbay with a groan as her head dropped. Moonbay turned around quickly to see Prozen with his eyes glaring at them with a smirk on his face. "Actually, we got here right before the bell rang. So we weren't late as you put it. Or do you have another version of late then the rest of do?" asked Moonbay intentionally trying to get on his nerves. Moonbay smiled because of her short victory over him "By the way. What are you doing here?" asked Moonbay with a skeptical glare as she looked at him. "The old man had some business to take care of, so I am going to be taking over his classes," said Prozen in an angry voice. "Now sit down before I send the both of you to the office," growled Prozen at Moonbay and Fiona. The two of them quickly walked to their seats and sat down in them without a word because Prozen would try and find any way to get them in trouble. 'We can't give him that pleasure, can we?' thought Moonbay with a smirk on her face. She just stared at the clock waiting for it to ring so that she wouldn't have to spend another moment in that room with their substitute. "Come on, come on. Ring already!' Moonbay mentally yelled at the clock. A minute later the bell rang and Moonbay immediately ran out of the class with Fiona right behind her.  
  
"Ten bucks says that our class will be much larger today," said Moonbay with a sad look on her face. "I already knew that. He is combining all of his classes that he has the periods that Dr. D had," said Irvine with a sigh as they walked to their first class. That just earned an even louder groan from Moonbay. "That means that Amy is going to be stuck in our class until the old man comes back," complained Moonbay feeling like she was going to go crazy. "All hell will break loose in that classroom with Amy there and Prozen teaching," said Irvine with a sigh. "It will be worse for Fiona because now she has to deal with Van and Amy at the same time and not be able to do anything because Prozen always favors Amy," said Moonbay knowing that it wasn't going to be a very pleasant week. "Well at least the projects are done so he can't flunk us despite how good we do," said Irvine with a small smirk on his face. "Listen, I need to go to my locker so I will meet you in class," said Moonbay with a slight wave of her hand as she rushed down the halls to make she wasn't late for the worst class for the day.  
  
All Fiona felt like doing was falling asleep. She hadn't had much sleep the night before because there were a lot of things on her mind at the time. She also knew that she couldn't do it here with Prozen around. 'Why is life being so cruel to me today of all days?' Fiona asked herself as she listen to Prozen make a boring speech that she had heard far too many times while she was in his classes. He was a very boring teacher compared to Dr. D. Dr. D added a little fun while he taught. Prozen however just talked away while writing things on the board. Everyone in the class at that moment was a little timid about him being their teacher for the day. looking around the now crowded room Fiona saw a sight that disgusted her. Amy was sitting right next to Van with her arms wrapped around him. It disgusted her in a way. Yet there was something else she felt when she saw that. She felt a strange type of jealousy building up just by watching it all happen. 'This is disgusting. How could she do that to my Van? AH! What the heck am I thinking? Van and me are not like that," Fiona mentally yelled at herself. She was shaking her head to try and clear herself of those thoughts. "Do you have a problem with what I am saying Fiona?" asked Prozen from the front of the class as he stared up at her with his creepy eyes. "No," muttered Fiona as she sank into her seat blushing with embarrassment. "What a loser," said Amy with a role of her eyes. The class remained silent. No one wanted to be the next target for Prozen by doing the smallest thing. Fiona wished for anything to just die right there to get rid of all of the staring eyes. As if on cue the bell rang and Fiona immediately got up and ran out of the class.  
  
"That was embarrassing," muttered Fiona as she walked home alone after school. 'Also, what the heck was I thinking? I have no feelings for Van besides friendship. Stupid Moonbay for putting those thoughts in my head,' thought Fiona as her head dropped. "What up?" asked Irvine making Fiona jump because of how quietly he had snuck up on her. "Don't do that. It seems like you and Moonbay are both trying to sneak up on me today," said Fiona clutching her chest. "That is because it is so much fun to see your reaction when we do stuff like that," said Irvine with a laugh. Fiona got a little annoyed and purposefully stepped on his foot as hard as she could. "Ouch!" yelled Irvine as he jumped into the air clutching his now sore foot. He remained jumping until it felt a little better and by that time Fiona was long gone. "Where'd she go?" asked Irvine not even noticing that she had left. Van came walking up at that exact moment. "What's up with here?" asked Van looking in the direction that he had seen Fiona walk off in. "No idea. She has been acting a bit strangely all day according to Moonbay," said Irvine with a shack of his head. "Something was bugging her last night as well. She called me to talk about something but she wouldn't say what it was," said Van with a curious stare. Upon hearing this, one thought flew into Irvine's mind. It also managed to cause him to smirk. "I think I may now have an idea on what is going on," said Irvine with the smirk still present. "What's that?" asked Van wanting to know what was wrong with his friend. Irvine continued to smirk as he walked off without saying a world to the now annoyed Van. "Hey! You didn't answer my question,' yelled Van as he ran after the smirking Irvine. "Why should I have to when with all the information we both know makes it all obvious," said Irvine looking behind him at Van. "What the hell is so obvious about it? I don't know what the hell you are talking about," yelled Van at the top of his lungs. "If you don't know that then I am not even going to bother telling you," said Irvine with a smirk before he ran off leaving a fuming Van.  
  
"What the heck is wrong with me?" asked Fiona as she laid back on her bed. "Why have these thoughts been coming to my mind all day? It is just driving me nuts," muttered Fiona into her pillow. "Don't tell me that. No! I cannot have fallen for Van," yelled Fiona. "Fiona, Van is on the phone," called Fiona's mother through her door. Fiona immediately sat up straight and grabbed the phone quickly. She just realized how she had just acted and mentally slapped herself. "She nervously put the phone to her ears and said, "Hello." "Hey Fiona," said Van in a cheery voice. "Hey Van," said Fiona with a voice that was the complete opposite of Van's. "Is something wrong? You have been acting strange all day. I thought that maybe something might be wrong," said Van in a worried tone. Fiona was slightly flattered that he was worried about her. She put it aside though. "I am ok. I just have a lot on my mind today. Sorry if I worried you," said Fiona in an apologetic tone. "You have absolutely nothing to be sorry about Fiona. I hope that whatever is bugging you will go away soon," said Van nicely. "Oh listen. I have to go. I will see you tomorrow," said Van in a nice voice before Fiona heard the phone line go dead. Fiona carefully placed the phone back down. "How can I get over it if you are the problem?" asked Fiona to a fake Van.  
  
Van hung up the phone when he heard his dad yelling that he needed to use the phone. "I wonder what is bugging her. She isn't telling me something. That is strange because she usually tells me if something is wrong because I can usual help her with it," said Van to himself quietly. "Maybe it is something serious that she is having a problem with," said Van in a worried voice. "Maybe it is me that she has a problem with," said Van with a laugh. "Nah. Even if she had a problem with me then she would have told me she had a problem with me. She has done it so many times before, but she has never acted like this. So I wonder what is up with her," Van said to himself. Unknowingly he ended up hitting the nail on the head. "Maybe tomorrow she will be more up into discussing what is wrong," said Van as he laid down and closed his eyes to go to sleep.  
  
"Um Fiona. Do you think I can maybe talk to you?" asked Thomas in an embarrassed voice once he had approached Fiona at school the next day. There was something that he wanted to ask her and this time he felt that eh would be able to do this. "Sure. What is it Thomas?" asked Fiona more like her normal self or at least she hoped it was more like her normal self. "Um. well. you see," said Thomas not knowing exactly what he was going to say. "Yes?" asked Fiona curious as to what he wanted. "Well I was wondering. Will you go out with me?" asked Thomas blushing greatly once he had managed to get the question out. Fiona was quiet for a while and Thomas was afraid that she was going to say no and never speak to him again. "Well. I guess I can," said Fiona in an unsure voice but Thomas didn't even notice it. "Great! How about we make it for Saturday? I will pick you up at six," said an excited Thomas. "Um, sure," said Fiona with a weak smile. Thomas then walked happily away. 'I guess this would be a good chance for me to get my mind off of my problems,' thought Fiona with a sigh. "What was that about?" asked Moonbay suddenly appearing out of nowhere. "Thomas asked me if I wanted to go out with him," said Fiona in a calm voice besides the fact that Moonbay's sudden appearance startled her a great deal. "So he finally got up the guts to actually ask you?" asked Moonbay laughing a little. "What is so funny about that?" asked Fiona turning to look at Moonbay. "He has wanted to do that since you first moved here. It took him that long just to get those words out of his mouth," said Moonbay laughing even more. "Really?" asked Fiona a little shocked. "Yeah. So where are the two of you going?" asked Moonbay with a smirk on her face. "I don't know. He didn't tell me," said Fiona with a shrug of her shoulders. "Oh well. Come on let's get to class. We don't want to be late if Prozen is still there," said Moonbay shuddering a little at the mere thought.  
  
"Take a look will you," whispered Moonbay when her, Irvine, and Fiona were right outside the classroom. "What are you nuts? He will try and get something on me for doing that," Irvine whispered right back to her. "You are the gentleman. You are supposed to look after us ladies," whispered Moonbay with a scowl. "The only lady I see here is Fiona," whispered Irvine back for the fun of it. That earned him a hard whack in the head from Moonbay. Suddenly the door opened and the two of them fell face first into the room. "What are the two of you doing?" asked Dr. D with a confused look on his face. "Um, nothing," said an embarrassed Moonbay as she stood up and ran into the room with Irvine right behind her. Dr. D then looked at Fiona for an answer to his question. "They were trying to see if Prozen was still the substitute but neither of them wanted to be the one to look because they are afraid of him," said Fiona with a small smile knowing that her favorite teacher was back. "I see," said Dr. D. "I thought that I told them that I didn't want that man to be teaching my class," muttered Dr. D as he headed towards her desk. "Sorry for leaving all of you with him," said Dr. D. "Why were you out Dr. D?" asked Fiona as the two of them walked into the classroom. "I had some important business that I desperately needed to take care of," said Dr. D as he took a seat in his desk. Fiona then walked towards her desk as she tried to not laugh at the embarrassed look Moonbay had on her face.  
  
"I never thought that I would be so glad to see the old man again," said Moonbay happily as they ate their lunches. "So am I. Now we don't have to put up with him as much anymore," said Irvine with a sigh of relief. "What are all of you talking about?" asked Thomas as he walked up to the table and took a seat near Fiona. "We were talking about how Dr. D is back," said Moonbay happily. "That's good, because I have that class next and now I don't have to worry about Prozen being there," said Thomas shuddering at the mere thought. "What do you think about it Fiona?" asked Thomas with a smile. Fiona could tell that he was still a little too excited about her saying yes. "I am glad that he is gone as well," said Fiona with a small smile. "I'll say. Anyone is better than that," said Thomas but Moonbay covered his mouth before he could say anything bad because at that moment Prozen ended up walking by their table looking at them all with a suspicious eye. He then walked by without a word to either of them. "Whoa, that was a little too close for comfort. If I hadn't covered your mouth then he most likely would have heard and tried to get all of us in trouble. I don't know about you but I am definitely starting to have enough pf all the detentions that he seems to love to give us," said Moonbay sighing a little. "I agree with you there. my parents are mad about last year because of the detentions. Although they aren't mad at me completely. They are mad at Prozen because he gave nearly all of them out. Every year that I have been here they have hoped that the school would get some brains and actually decide to get rid of him once and for all," said Irvine with a small laugh. "If only they would," said Moonbay happy about just thinking of a school without Prozen in it.  
  
"Why is it that I am not too thrilled to be thinking about this date?" asked Fiona as she got ready that Saturday. "I say that it is because you do love that one friend of your," said Moonbay with a smirk on her face at the small blush that crossed Fiona's face. "We are not like that," said Fiona shyly. "Say what you want but the blush on your face says it all," said Moonbay smirking even more. "I swear we aren't," Fiona nearly yelled. "So who is this guy? How come you won't tell me who he is? We are friends aren't we? Friends can tell friends anything," said Moonbay with a smile on her face. "I told you before that I can't tell you who he is," said Fiona quietly. "And once again I ask you, why not?" said Moonbay a little annoyed that Fiona was keeping things from her. "It is very complicated like I said. Now please just drop the subject. I really don't feel like talking about it," said Fiona quietly. "Some friends you and Irvine are. You two can't tell me this one simple thing," said an upset Moonbay. "I am sorry," was all that Fiona said before turning away. "Fine! See if I tell you anything from now on," said Moonbay crossing her arms and turning away. The strange thing was that at that moment all she felt like doing was laughing. The ringing of the doorbell cut the silence that was between them. "Listen. I have to go," said Fiona getting up and walking towards her bedroom door.  
  
"You look great Fiona," said Thomas once Fiona had opened the door. He then held out some flowers for her. "Um. Thanks," said Fiona in a quiet tone as she slowly took the flowers. "Something the matter? Are you feeling all right? Because if you aren't then we can always reschedule this," said Thomas in a worried tone. "No. I am fine. I just have a lot on my mind. So, come on. Lets go," said Fiona with a weak smile. 'Come on Fiona. Forget about him. Try and have a little fun today to get your mind off of your problems,' Fiona told herself as the two walked out to a car. The only people who had licenses at the moment were Irvine and Thomas. Van had one but his family only had one car that only his dad could use. 'Forget about Van!' Fiona mentally berated herself. Both her and Moonbay were going to be taking their tests soon. Fiona knew that Thomas didn't have a car so he must have borrowed it from his brother or someone in his family. "So where are we going?" asked Fiona a little curious as to what they were going to be doing that night. "I have reservations for us at a restaurant," said Thomas with a smile at Fiona. 'Wow. I am going on a date with Fiona. Today is going to be great. I am going to make sure of that,' thought Thomas with a smile.  
  
"I have a reservation for two under the name Shubaltz," said Thomas when they had reached the restaurant. "Ah, yes. Right this way sir," said the waiter once he had found the name. Thomas and Fiona quietly followed the man as he led them through many tables towards an empty one in the back. "This place is nice," said Fiona quietly as she took a look around the place. "Yeah, it is," said Thomas in response. His attention wasn't on the restaurant but it was on Fiona. A waiter then came up to them and handed them their menus. "Thank you," said Fiona when she took it. She then looked up and smiled at the man. "You are welcome," said the man nicely as he handed Thomas a menu and he just mumbled a thank you while he opened it up to look at it. They took a good look over the menus until the waiter came back asking for their decision. After giving him their choices, the man took the menus and walked away from the table. "Enjoying yourself so far?" asked Thomas looking at Fiona with a smile on his face. "Yeah, I guess," said Fiona quietly. Thomas was about to speak again but the doors to the restaurant opened and in walked two people he didn't want to see.  
  
"It is so boring tonight. I wonder how Fiona's night is going," said Moonbay in a bored voice. "I am sure that about now it is not going too good," said Irvine with a smirk on his face. "Why? She is finally going on a date after all of these years," said Moonbay a little confused by what Irvine said. "I happen to know that Van and Amy are going to go to the same place that Thomas was going to take Fiona," said Irvine with a small smile. "Boy isn't that Ironic," said Moonbay in an astonished voice. 'No, I am just giving them a push in the right direction. Fiona refuses to admit it and Van doesn't think about it but I think that they would make a good couple if they were to get together,' thought Irvine with a smirk. "What's with the smirk it is almost like you don't want them to be going out and that this is a good thing," said Moonbay in an astonished voice. "Thomas is fine and all but I don't think that he is the right person for Fiona," said Irvine calmly. "Who do you think is right for her? That unknown friend?" asked Moonbay calmly. "He is a good person, give or take a few minor problems with his life," said Irvine after thinking it over a little. "Why is it you guys won't tell me who he is?" asked Moonbay sadly. "There are a lot of problem with it all. Most of it is best left unknown," said Irvine in a sympathetic voice. "Like what?" asked Moonbay curiously. 'The whole friendship,' thought Irvine with a small chuckle. "It doesn't matter. Fiona will tell you when she is ready. Not until then though, so don't get your hopes up of it being anytime soon," said Irvine making Moonbay pout a little. "Listen, there is something that I need to go do. So I will see you later," said Irvine as he got up and walked to his car.  
  
"What are those two doing here?" asked Thomas in an annoyed voice upon seeing Van and Amy walking through the door. "I don't know," said Fiona looking away. Thomas watched as they walked up to the person they had when they first walked in and watched as he led them in their direction. 'Oh no,' groaned Thomas realizing that the closest open table was only two or three tables away from them. 'What are they doing here? I thought Van might have mentioned something like this to me. I guess not though,' thought Fiona with a frown on her face. When they got close to their table Amy noticed the two of them and an angry expression crossed her face. Fiona nearly laughed when Amy turned around and as far as she could tell she was yelling at Van for something.  
  
"What are they doing here Van? Didn't you even check to see if this place was even clean?" yelled Amy annoying every waiter within the area. Van was trying hard but was having a hard time to get her to calm down. "How was I supposed to know that they were going to be here?" asked Van with an embarrassed face with all the attention she was giving them. 'Besides the fact that Irvine told me,' thought Van afterwards. He didn't know why he wanted to come just by hearing this. Jealousy, or wanting to make sure that no one ruined it. He really didn't know why it was that he came here in the first place. "Well I want to go somewhere else now," growled Amy in Van's face. To say that she was angry was an understatement. 'man, she really hates Fiona. Must be from all that Fiona has done to her precious reputation since she first came here,' thought Van with a nervous smile. "Why not just try to ignore them. That way the night won't be ruined by a fight?" asked Van trying his best to calm her down. "I guess you are right," said Amy calming down a little but anyone in the restaurant could tell that she was still upset. The two then walked the rest of the way until they were at their table instead of taking her seat though Amy decided to use Van's lap as a seat. Fiona felt like throwing up at that moment. Then Amy went and kissed Van.  
  
Fiona saw this and she felt something strange inside herself. She couldn't quite place what it was exactly. No, wait forget that. She knew what it was. She was jealous of it all. Fiona didn't know what came over her but she quickly got up from the table and ran out of the restaurant before Thomas could do anything. All that she left him was an, "I'm sorry," before she left the place. Thomas was a little shocked by what had just happened that he wasn't able to do anything for another minute. He quickly put down some money and then ran out of the restaurant right after her. By the time that he got out of the place, she was nowhere to be seen. "Where is she?" Thomas asked looking around the place. She wasn't in the car. The streets were empty. She wasn't anywhere to be seen. Thomas angrily ran to his car and got in so that he could go and look for her.  
  
Fiona ran and ran until she was a good distance from the restaurant. 'No! I couldn't have,' Fiona yelled at herself. It did no good though. her mind was yelling the complete opposite at her. She finally stopped a few moments later. "No," was all that Fiona could say. A car then pulled up right next to her. the window rolled down to show Irvine. "Hey. Need a ride?" asked Irvine with a small smile. Fiona gratefully accepted the help since she didn't know where she was at that moment or even the way back to the restaurant. "Thank you," said Fiona quietly as she got into the car. "Why are you out there and not with Thomas?" asked Irvine with worry in his eyes. "Did he do something?" asked Irvine right after. "No. He didn't do anything. I saw something I couldn't take and I ran off," said Fiona quietly. There was a silence that went on between them after that. Fiona then spoke and broke the silence. "I have, haven't I?" asked Fiona quietly. "You've what Fiona?" asked Irvine although he already knew what she was talking about. "Fallen for him," said Fiona quietly. "Fallen for Van," she continued. "I've known it for a while. You just refused to accept the truth," said Irvine as if it was a mere fact. "How did you know before I knew?" asked Fiona in confusion. "There were many things that you did when you were around him that gave it away. There was always a certain happiness that you had when you were around him then you had when you are around your others friends," said Irvine in a calm voice. "This is something that I shouldn't be feeling for him. He has a girlfriend that he seems happy with at times," said Fiona quietly. "She is also a girlfriend that he is forced to stay with. You shouldn't fret about these things though. Everyone will most likely fall for someone at some point," said Irvine as he kept his eyes on the road ahead of him. "Like you and Moonbay," said Fiona with a small smile. Irvine sent a playful glare at her. She laughed a little and it made Irvine happy to see it. 'A depressed face doesn't look good on her,' Irvine noted with a small smile. 'Who knows? Maybe someday the two of them will end up together. At least once Van gets rid of that other girl. Then he can be with a woman like Fiona. Amy is a spoiled Brat that doesn't deserve anyone. Somehow I have this feeling that she is the one behind Van being forced to stay with her,' thought Irvine grimacing at the thought. 'It definitely wouldn't surprise me,' he thought. "So where to? Your house or back to the restaurant?" asked Irvine with a smile. "Just take me home. I need a little sleep to think over all that I have learned," said Fiona. "Right," was all that Irvine said before driving in the direction of Fiona's house.  
  
Irvine's car pulled up besides Fiona's house and Fiona quickly got out of the car. "I'll see you later," said Irvine as he drove the car off. Fiona walked into the house and up to her room without talking to anyone about anything. She fell down upon her bed and closed her eyes while thinking about all that she had just learned. "I have fallen in love with Van. The feeling feels so good. Yet it is so wrong at the same time. Why is it that I had to have had this happen to me?" Fiona asked herself. "Why did I have to fall for him? I know one thing for sure. I can't tell him I have to keep this to myself or he might not talk to me again," said Fiona sad at the mere thought of that even happening. She calmed down a little and fell asleep soon after. 


	11. birthday surprise

Fiona tried to calmly walk into the doors of the school Monday morning. She came relatively early so the halls were pretty empty besides a few students and teachers that were already there. Over the weekend she had managed to think over her newfound knowledge but it really didn't make her feel any different. She was very confused. What she found out, she didn't really mean for it to happen. For some reason it just did. She really didn't want to face Van at that moment because of that. 

'Why, why did this have to happen?' Fiona asked herself as she walked down the halls to her locker. She was tired because she woke up early and went to bed late, but she continued to keep walking in the direction of her locker.

"Something n your mind?" came a voice that startled her when the voice said it. It was a familiar voice. A wise one that she knew that she could talk to, but in this circumstance she didn't really feel like talking all that much.

Fiona turned her head to see Dr. D standing in the doorway to his classroom. "No. I just have a lot on my mind. I am just fine," said Fiona with a slight shake of her head. She then put on a weak smile but it didn't seem to fool the old man.

"Care to talk about it? It might do you some good to talk about it and get it off your mind. Plus that and I am all ears if you need me. I am a good listener," said Dr. D in a nice voice.

Fiona thought that it kind of him to offer her some help but she felt that she didn't need anyone else's help. "No. I think this is something that I need to do on my own. Thank you for offering though," said Fiona putting a smile on her face.

"Just remember that I am always here if you need any help. It is a teachers duty to help a student if they are troubled in anyway," said Dr. D as he turned around to walk back into his classroom.

"Thank you," said Fiona to his retreating form before she started walking in the direction of her locker still a little confused but she felt that she would be able to come up with the answers that she needed if she had a little more time alone.

* * *

"They should let people out of school if it is their birthday. Sometimes I wish that my birthday was in the summer so that I would never have to go to school on my birthday," grumbled Van as he walked out of his house at his normal time.

"What are you grumbling about now? No wait let me guess, it has to do with school again?" asked Irvine with a smirk as he saw Van walk out of his house. He saw Van hang his head and that helped him get his answer to the question. His new question was what part of school was annoying him today.

"It is my birthday and I have to go to school. It is my birthday!" yelled Van in complete annoyance. "Why, why, why did my birthday have to be today of all days?" asked Van with a pout.

"Yeah. That is such a bummer. Good thing my birthday is in the summer. That way I never have to go to school on any of those days," said Irvine with a smirk because he was enjoying watching Van suffer too much at that moment.

"Yeah lucky you," said Van sarcastically as he trudged towards the school. "Why couldn't my birthday have just been on a weekend this year?" asked Van knowing that it wasn't going to be a very good day like most birthdays were supposed to be. "Oh well. Let's just get school over with so that I can actually enjoy my birthday for the few hours that we are out of it," said Van with a sigh. He knew that he was going to hate school worse than usual today, and another event that was happening afterwards.

Van turned to look at Irvine only to see him smirking. "You think that this is funny watching me suffer like this!" Van yelled into his face. Today was definitely not going his way.

"Yeah, sorry, I just couldn't help it. It is just too good to watch you squirm the way that you have been," said Irvine before he started to burst out laughing. He just continued to laugh for a few more minutes before he stopped and then changed the subject. "Somehow I have a feeling that it isn't just school that is getting on your nerves about today of all days," said Irvine with a little smirk as he turned around to face an annoyed Van.

"Yeah. There is more to it than that. Later today, I have to go over to Amy's house after school. She wants me to celebrate my birthday before I can celebrate it with my family. Celebrating with her is always the same. Go over, eat a very quiet dinner where no one speaks or it is a very boring on, and then I go home," said Van in an exhausted voice.

"Then why don't you just come up with some excuse so that you won't have to go? That way you can just get away from it?" asked Irvine actually feeling sorry for Van on this occasion.

"No can do. Unfortunately I decided to be a little kind at the end of the summer to Amy, saying that I owed her for not going on a vacation with her. This is what she used when I at least attempted to get away?" said Van with a large sigh.

"You just had to sign your own fate over on your birthday didn't you?" asked Irvine with a slight smirk on his face. "You know what you need to do?" asked Irvine still smirking.

"What is that? Run as far away as possible so that I might be able to have a little peace today of all days?" asked Van with a bit of sarcasm in his voice. He was not looking forward to this event.

"No. You need to get a better girlfriend. One that isn't as possessive and bitchy as Amy is. That is the only way for you to be able to have a nice life," said Irvine once again putting on his smirk.

"It isn't Amy that I have a problem with, it is her family. It wouldn't be fair to her to do that just because her family. She has never really been too bad to me," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders.

"Sure. She may not have a problem with you because you're her boyfriend, but what about people like Fiona and Moonbay. She can be pretty nasty when it comes to the two of them," said Irvine as he continued walking down the street. "You know what? I just thought of something," said Irvine with a smirk on his face.

"Did it hurt?" asked Van on the verge of laughing. "No, really. What is it that you thought about?" asked Van as he turned towards Irvine waiting to hear what Irvine had to say at that moment.

"I think I know someone that would be much better for you than Amy for a girlfriend," said Irvine figuring that he do a little matchmaking that would be able to help both of his friends.

"Even if I wanted to do something like that, you know that I wouldn't be able to. Out of curiosity though, who is it that you have in mind?" asked Van figuring that he could have a bit of a laugh with this later.

"How about Fiona? The two of you get along really well whenever you have a chance to talk to each other. I think that you two would make a good pair," said Irvine with a smirk on his face.

"Fiona? We are nothing but friends. Where the heck could you have gotten an idea like that?" asked Van with a very confused look on his face. 'Oh come on. I am sure that you think that it is a great idea,' came a voice in Van's head. Van just shook it off right after it spoke just thinking that he was going crazy.

"Whatever," said Irvine as he exhaled making a little fog. He didn't know why but he always found that very interesting. He did that a few more times before it started to get boring and he stopped.

Van let out a small shiver. "Sure is starting to get cold out her," said Van with rattling teeth. He decided to skip bringing a coat that day because he didn't think that he would need it. He was definitely regretting making that decision at that moment. It was times like these that he wish he had the money for a car so that he would never have to walk to every place. 'My life stinks a great deal of the time,' Van mentally told himself as he clutched himself in hopes of warming himself up.

"That is usually what happens about this time of year. It starts to get colder," said Irvine in a mocking tone. He just smirked at the look that Van gave him because of that one little comment.

Van just glared at him for that comment. "I wish that something would make this day go a little better. Like maybe I win a few million dollars. That would be just too good to be true," said Van with a sigh.

"If only it were that easy, but poor people like us can still dream. Although I am sure that if you did get that type of money you would share it with me, right?" asked Irvine grinning at the mere thought of money like that.

"Not a chance. I would use all the money for myself and not let anyone at it," said Van in a joking manner. He then started to laugh a little bit but he tried his best to hold it in. It failed though as he started laughing.

For some reason, Irvine couldn't help but laugh as well. "Come on. we have to get going or we will be late to school again," said Irvine as he started to run down the streets towards the school. Van soon took off right after him.

* * *

Van just sat there bored out of his mind as he listened to his English teacher go on and on about things. 'All right, I just don't get it. We speak English, so why is it that we have to take a class about it? I can imagine foreigners taking it but why do everyone else have to take it?' Van asked himself as he let out a slight yawn. 'I want to sleep,' thought Van as he laid his head down. Soon his eyes shut and he fell into a light sleep.

Van looked around and found himself in a dark area. "What the heck! Where am I?" asked Van as he took a look around the area. It was so dark that he could barely see his own hand right in front of his face.

A small light then went on not too far away from Van. It was very dim, yet Van could just barely make out a figure in it. He couldn't tell who it was. The only thing that he could tell was that it was a girl. There was something about her though. he couldn't place it. All he could see was her long hair running down her back. She was turning slightly and Van felt he was about to see who she was, but...

A slamming on his desk caused Van to jump up in fright. Van looked and saw a bunch of books on his desk and a very annoyed teacher standing over him with a glare in her eyes.

"Mr. Flyheight. Do you such a problem with my teaching that you would prefer to be sleeping during all of it?" asked the teacher in such a calm voice that it really scared Van.

Van knew better then to be fooled by the way she was acting. He knew that she was definitely furious at him for falling asleep. "Um, no?" said Van in a questioning voice as he scratched the back of his head nervously. 'This isn't good,' thought Van with a nervous smile on his face.

* * *

Fiona walked down the halls with a smile on her face despite all of the problems that she was having. She was thankful that her teacher needed an assistant so that she could get out of class for a few minutes to clear her head a little bit. She was feeling a little better about all that has happened to her but she was still bothered by it a little.

Walking down the halls towards her destination, Fiona couldn't help but notice Van standing out in the hallways. 'The one person I am trying to avoid right now is the one person I have to pass to get where I need to go,' thought Fiona with a sigh. 'Sometimes life can be a little too cruel,' she thought.

She was so lost in thought at that moment that she didn't hear Moonbay calling out to her from a little further behind. "Hey Fiona!" yelled Moonbay as she ran after Fiona only to be stopped by a teacher.

"Quit running in the halls and please keep quiet because there are classes in session," scolded the teacher when Moonbay skidded to a halt from her sudden appearance.

"Sorry," said Moonbay in a hushed voice as she started to walk again in the direction Fiona went. After turning a corner, Moonbay looked back and seeing that the teacher was gone, she took off again. She was about to call out to Fiona when she saw the trouble that was about to start.

Fiona continued to walk but in a slightly slower pace. Van noticed this and also how she looked a little sad at that moment. "Is something wrong Fiona?" asked Van in a slightly hushed tone so that she was the only one that could hear him.

"No," said Fiona with a slight shake of her head. She continued to walk so as to not draw too much attention. "I just have a lot on my mind is all," said Fiona quietly. 'And it is all about you,' she thought mentally.

"If you say so," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders, "but I get the feeling that there is something that you are not telling me," he continued with an accusing yet playful look in his eyes.

"There is, but I am not really up to talking about it right now. I need to deal with it on my own at this moment," said Fiona as she passed Van without looking in his direction.

"If you say so," said Van shrugging his shoulders again. "You know where to find me at least most of the time if you want to talk about it," said Van with a calm look on his face.

'Thanks but I don't think I can really do that right now,' thought Fiona as she walked away from Van. Just by talking to Van, Fiona felt a little more at ease but it wasn't much. She knew that it would still be a long time before she would ever feel great about it.

Off in the distance, Moonbay had a very confused look on her face. 'All right, that was weird. They passed by each other without even throwing one insult at each other. They even appeared to be talking. I have no idea what they were saying but Fiona looked sad about it all. Then again, she appeared to be sad for most of today. Van may be different from a few years ago but I know that he isn't one to make fun of people when they are feeling really down like Fiona. I wonder what they were saying to each other,' thought Moonbay with a confused look on her face. She then turned the other way and walked away because she knew she might only get more confused if she was to ask about it.

* * *

"I have a question Irvine," said Van as the two walked away from the school later that day. He was very curious as to the reason that Fiona seemed so sad earlier that day and he really wanted to know what was wrong with his friend.

"What's that? Do you want me to tell you how to tie your shoes again?" asked Irvine with a laugh at the annoyed looked that appeared on Van's face. It was too priceless to Irvine; he loved getting on Van's nerves.

"No," said Van giving Irvine a glare. "I was wonder if you might know what was wrong with Fiona today. I noticed that she seemed awfully sad for some reason. Do you know what is wrong with her?" asked Van with worry in his voice.

'You,' thought Irvine mentally but he decided that he wasn't going to be the one to tell Van what was wrong with Fiona. "I really have no idea. I was kind of hoping that you could tell me. You two did talk earlier in the day didn't you?" asked Irvine with curiosity.

"How did you know that?" asked Van very surprised that he knew of his and Fiona's little conversation when he was pretty sure that there was no one in the area and they didn't do anything that looked that suspicious.

"Moonbay saw. Don't worry. She just thought that the two of you were having a very silent argument while trying to stay out of trouble by talking very loudly," said Irvine remembering what Moonbay had told him.

"Oh good. When you said that Moonbay saw, I got a little scared," admitted Van. "To tell the truth. I asked her what was wrong and she didn't want to talk about it," said Van with worry in his eyes.

'Of course she wouldn't talk to you about it. You are the reason for all of it,' Irvine fought the urge to say. He succeeded though. Irvine then decided that he would try to tease Van a little. "What's the matter are you that worried about Fiona. It is only natural to worry for the people that we love a lot," said Irvine with a smirk on his face at the blush that crept across Van's face.

"I...I don't have those type of feelings for Fiona!" stuttered Van which didn't go unnoticed by Irvine. "She is just a good friend and I was really worried about her," Van said a little more calmly.

Irvine couldn't help but chuckle a little. "Chill out. I was only teasing you. No need to get so worked up about it unless you really do have those type of feelings for Fiona," said Irvine with a smirk.

Van was now looking for any sort of excuse on how to get off this conversation. It was something that he didn't feel comfortable talking about. He loved Fiona but he wasn't in love with her. It was then that something caught his eye. "Whoa, check it out," said Van once he noticed a car that was parked in his driveway.

The car was a blue mustang convertible with its top already down. The two of them could only gawk at the awesome looking car.

"You expecting anyone Van?" asked Irvine with an amazed look. By the look of the car it was something only someone with a lot of money would be able to buy. Irvine wasn't aware that Van knew anyone like that.

"Not that I am aware of. So I wonder who could be coming here on such short notice," said Van as he reluctantly stepped away from the car and headed to the door hoping to get some answers.

Opening the door he walked into the house with making no attempts to be silent. "Hello, I home," yelled Van throughout the house but there was no reply. "Hello," Van repeated but once again there was still no answer. "That's strange, usually there is someone here. I wonder where everyone is," said Van as he took a look around the house only to find no one was even there.

"Where is everyone?" asked Irvine with a confused look on his face. He thought that his family would be here for Van's birthday. 'Where could everyone be,' Irvine thought to himself.

"I have no idea," muttered Van as he looked around. Van thought that at any moment people would spring up everywhere saying, "Surprise," but it never came. The house truly was completely empty. It confused Van greatly to figure this out.

The two of them walked into the kitchen and looked for any messages as to where the rest of his family had suddenly disappeared to. It was there that Van found a small package that was addressed to him. He looked it over for a second before reaching for it. He looked for who it was from and it had a name of a man that he didn't even know.

"Who is it from?" asked Irvine trying to get a good look at the small package. He was very curious as to what was in the very small package and of the person that sent it to Van.

"It says that it came from a man named Derek, but it doesn't give any other information. I don't even know anyone by that name," said Van as he continued to look the package over.

"Better be careful then," said Irvine very cautiously. There was something very strange about it. It was then that Irvine also noticed a note that was placed under the area that the package was originally. "Hey van, Maybe this will explain some things," said Irvine picking up the note and handing it to Van.

Van took the note and looked it over. It was a very short note, being only a few words. It said, "Van, don't worry about it, it is ok. The package is not dangerous," Then there was his fathers signature. Van then turned it over looking for more but there was nothing else on the note.

"My dad says it is fine. So I guess that it is ok to open this," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders. He then tore off the top of the package and out popped three things. There were a piece of paper, a cell phone, and a key.

Irvine took one look at the key before a broad smirk crossed his face. "You do know what this means Van?" asked Irvine with the smirk still present on his face. This was just too good to be true for Irvine.

Van couldn't help but grin as well. "Oh yeah," said Van with a smirk as he threw his stuff to the side and the two of them ran out of the house at top speed. Only stopping at the car that was parked outside. "Guess this birthday didn't turn out as bad as I thought it would" said Van as he hopped into the drivers seat.

"Where to? Or should we just drive around for a while for the fun of it?" asked Irvine as Van started up the car with the key that was in the envelope. He noticed that Van appeared to think it over for a little.

While he was thinking, Irvine took out the other things that were in the envelope and took a look at them. The cell phone, like the car, looked like it cost quite a bit and had almost everything a cell phone could have on it. Irvine looked over the piece of paper and realized that they were directions to some place. "Hey Van, Take a look at this," said Irvine giving Van the directions.

"What I it?" asked Van as he took it and looked it over. "I guess that we will be heading there," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders. Before he gave Irvine the direction to make it easier for him to get there. "Where does it lead exactly?" asked Van with great curiosity.

"By the looks of it, it leads into the city. Where in the city I am not too sure," said Irvine as he tried to find out where the place was. "I guess we will just have to go there and find out what this is all about," said Irvine.

"Then what are we waiting for? We can test this baby out on the way there anyways," said Van with a grin as he got the car moving and took off down the streets towards their destination.

* * *

"So tell me, what were you and Van arguing about earlier today?" asked Moonbay curiously as the two of them walked down the streets long after school had ended.

Fiona was about to panic that Moonbay saw her and Van but was glad to hear that she thought that they were arguing with each other and not in friendly conversation. "He insulted me but I wasn't up to arguing at that moment so I just decided to remain quiet so that I wouldn't end up getting in trouble," Fiona lied.

"So, are you doing anything tonight because I am going to be very bored if you are not there for at least a little bit," said Moonbay with a sigh when she thought of her plans for the night, or her lack of plans.

'I was planning to go over to Van's despite the problems that I was having about him. It is his birthday and I wanted to wish him a happy birthday,' thought Fiona. "I do have something planned, but I can hang out with you until then," said Fiona trying to settle for at least something to be able to satisfy her friend.

"I guess that that will be ok. What is it that you have to do? I might be able to help you out if you need help with it," said Moonbay trying to find anything that would take some of her extra time away from non-busy schedule.

"No. I am sorry but I have to do this on my own," said Fiona with a small frown while shaking her head very slowly. Fiona hated lying to her friend but she didn't want anyone to know at that moment.

"Going to see that friend of yours again?" asked Moonbay with a bit of bitterness in her voice. "I have given up trying to ask who it is, but I warn you that I will find out who he is before the end of the year," said Moonbay with determination in her voice.

"I promise you that I will tell you at some point but there is too much going on right now to be telling people about it," said Fiona with a little sadness in her voice, which didn't go unnoticed by Moonbay.

"Can I ask you something Fiona?" asked Moonbay in a friendly voice. She figured that she would settle for small details instead of the whole truth.

"What is it Moonbay?" asked Fiona very skeptically. She was being cautious now so that she wouldn't give away too much information to Moonbay at that moment by saying things she didn't mean to say.

"The way you have been acting for the past few days. Does it have anything to do with him?" asked Moonbay bringing up the subject of how she was acting just like everyone had been doing today. Fiona just nodded her head and that was good enough for Moonbay. "Do you love him?" asked Moonbay figuring that she hit the nail on the head when she saw Fiona's expression. "If you love him then what is the problem?" asked Moonbay curiously.

"It is far too complicated to tell you right now. My whole problem is because I found out that I love him. It is just becoming a little too much for me to handle at this moment," said Fiona very sadly.

"Why don't you just tell him? It might help you get some of the pressure that it is causing off of your chest," said Moonbay trying to find something to help her friend.

"There are so many things wrong with doing that. Plus that and I am afraid of what his reaction would be," said Fiona in a really worried voice. Her friendship with Van meant everything to her and she didn't want to ruin that because of her feelings for him.

"I wish that I could help you but you aren't even letting me in on the little secret like you did Irvine," said Moonbay in a fake hurt voice. She was just fooling around at that moment though.

"I'm sorry," was all that Fiona was able to say before she took off at a faster speed to get to he home. She didn't want to talk about it at that moment. She hoped that Moonbay would get the idea and just drop the subject.

* * *

"Wow! Check this place out. It is huge," said Irvine as he got out of the car and looked at the giant building that the directions sent them to. Irvine was just too amazed that whoever sent the present them to a place like this.

"Are you sure that we got the directions right?" asked Van as he looked over the building with high curiosity. He wasn't sure if it was just some sort of joke or someone actually wanted them to come there.

"I am positive. I read all of the direction perfectly. Whoever sent you those present sure most be rich to want us to come to a place like this," said Irvine still looking the place over.

"I guess so. I was just wondering because this is supposed to be one of the biggest companies in our country. Why would someone that makes close to a million a year just by working here want with poor people like us?" asked Van with a lot of worry that there might be something wrong.

"Who cares? As long as we are here, why don't we try and have a little fun just being in a place like this. I have heard a lot about some of the things that go on in here and I am curious as to if they are true," said Irvine in an excited voice.

"Well then. We might as well go in and see what this is all about," said Van with a shrug of his shoulders as he walked towards the doors with Irvine in hot pursuit. Van was curious as to what this was about.

The two walked through the sliding doors in the packed lobby of the building. The two were completely amazed by all the neat things that they were seeing.

Van and Irvine walked up to the desk that was in the center of the lobby to see a girl that was about their ago sitting there typing on the computer. "Um excuse me," said Van a bit nervously as he tried to get the girls attention. The girl looked up at him and Van saw by the name on the nametag that her name was Rosa.

"Yes, what can I do for the two of you?" asked the girl in a kind voice as she brought a smile to her face in order to make a good impression on their guests.

"Yes, I received something at my house earlier today and it instructed me to come here. So I was wondering if maybe someone wanted me here," said Van thinking that the way he said that sounded very stupid.

"What is you name and I will check and see if there is anyone expecting you here," said the girl in a cheerful voice, as she turned to the computer ready to type in whatever it was that Van would tell her.

"My name is Van Flyheight," said Van. He noticed that she didn't even start typing but instead she turned to face him. "Are you even going to check?" asked Van in a confused voice.

"There is no need for that. All you have to do is go to the very top floor. He will be waiting for you up there," said Rosa as she pointed towards the elevator. She heard Van groan a little and giggled slightly.

'That is awfully high up,' said Van as he looked up. "Come on Irvine. We might as well go and figure out what this is all about," said Van as he headed to the elevator only to be stopped by Rosa.

"Wait," she said as she ran up to Van. You might want to take this with you," said Rosa as she held out a pass. "It will help you get by the security without any problems," she said as she turned around and walked back to the desk.

"Thanks," muttered Van as he turned back around and headed towards the elevator with Irvine following right behind him in excitement that this wasn't some sort of joke.

Do you have any idea on what is going on yet?" asked Irvine as he leaned against the wall of the elevator waiting for them to reach their floor. He still had no idea what was going on or how anyone here even knew Van or his family.

"None whatsoever. I am just as confused about this as you are. I wonder why someone that I don't even know would send me a car, and a cell phone. It also makes me wonder why my dad would even say this is ok even though I have no idea who this person is," said Van as he too leaned against the wall.

"I guess we will just have to see what it is," said Irvine as the elevator came to a stop on the top floor. "This will be good I think," said Irvine with a smirk as he took a step forward.

The two of them stepped out of the elevator and took a good look around the room. It a much smaller room than the one that was on the first floor. There was a large door in the center of the far wall with a desk off to the right and a large security guard off to the left.

The security guard got up when he noticed Van and Irvine walk into the room. "This floor is restricted unless you are either a worker or have special permission," said the guard as he walked towards Van.

Van then remembered the pass and quickly pulled it out of his pocket. "We were told to come here and the girl down at the desk gave us this," said Van showing the man the pass.

"Ah. You must be Van then. We have been waiting for you," said the woman behind the desk as she stood up and walked towards Van and Irvine. "It is ok Rosso. He called for them specifically," said the woman to the guard. "Hello, my name is Viola. We have been expecting you. So will you please follow me?" asked Viola to Van and Irvine as she headed towards the large doors.

Van and Irvine looked at each other and then followed after her very cautiously towards the door. The door then opened and Viola walked into the room followed by a very cautious Van and Irvine.

"He is here sir,' said Viola to a man that was sitting in a chair that faced a window that overlooked the city that was below them. With that said she quietly turned around and walked out of the room.

Van couldn't help but feel a little nervous because by the looks of this room he was one of the people that were in charge here if not the person that ran it all. Van just couldn't seem to help himself in feeling very nervous.

The chair turned around to reveal a rather young looking man. He had to only be in his early thirty give or take a few years. He wore a broad smile on his face as he spotted Van standing there very nervously. "Welcome," he said with a smile. "It is so good to finally meet you Van," said the man as he stood up.

"Um, I don't mean to sound rude but how is it that you know me?" asked Van with curiosity in his voice. He expected the man to be annoyed but all that he heard was a laugh come from the man. Van raised an eyebrow in confusion when he saw that it was coming from the man in front of them.

"I guess he really didn't tell you," said the man still smiling. He walked up to Van and Irvine. "Yep, he definitely didn't tell you," said the man as he looked over the two very confused faces.

"Who didn't tell me what?" asked Van only becoming more confused by the second. 'I wish that someone would just tell me what is going on already. I think that I will go crazy if I don't get some answers soon,' thought Van slightly annoyed.

"That would be me," came a voice from behind the two of them. This caused Van and Irvine to turn around to see his father standing there with a small smile on his face. "I am sure that the two of you are both very curious as to what is going on," said Dan as he approached the desk. He looked to see both of their headed nodding. "I own this place. It is really as simple as that," said Dan as he took a seat behind the desk.

"YOU WHAT?" yelled Van very loudly. He just couldn't believe what he was hearing. All this time he thought his dad was working for Amy's father and just barely getting by with that, but it turns out that he runs one of the largest businesses in the country. Van began to wonder if that would get him out of what Amy's father had on him. It didn't mean he would break up with Amy because she had nothing to do with it but he knew it would get him out of the blackmail.

"Wait a minute. If you are in charge here, then why is it that you have another job?" asked Irvine with confusion written all over his face. "Also, why is it that you never told him anything about this?" He continued to ask.

"To keep Van away from the media. They can really mess with people's minds sometimes with all of the attention that they could give. About my other job, it was mainly to learn more about my competition. Although I am not completely sure if he bought any of it," admitted Dan as he leaned back in the chair. "He is after all going to inherit this place once I retire," said Dan with a smirk on his face. That made both Van and Irvine even more shocked.

'I am going to be rich,' thought a shocked Van. He probably didn't have more than twenty bucks at a time in all of his life, and now he was going to inherit one of the most well known companies around. His birthday just kept getting better and better. Van just couldn't help but grin.

'Van's going to be rich? I wonder if he will be able to lend me a few thousand at some point,' thought Irvine liking the idea of having a rich friend. Now he would never be in debt to anyone again. Irvine couldn't help but grin with Van.

"Why don't you both sit down and we can talk about it," said Dan pointing towards the two seats that were right across from his desk. "Do either of you care for anything to eat?" asked Dan with a smile.

"Sure," said Irvine in an excited voice. Dan couldn't help but laugh at this. "What do you have?" asked Irvine having a hard time trying to control his excitement at the mention of food because he had yet to eat anything all day and it was really starting to get to him.

"Um, do you know what time it is?" asked Van out of curiosity. Actually it was because his girlfriend would kill him if he happened to be late for the dinner she was giving him, and that was something that he didn't want.

Dan took a look at the watch that he had around his wrist and said, "It is about five," said Dan before lowering his arm and looking at his son. He then noticed the look of panic that swept across Van and wanted an explanation.

"Oh no! I am going to be late. I am sorry but a I have to go," said Van as he headed towards the door. He didn't even look back as he ran through the door and through the elevator completely forgetting that he brought Irvine with him.

"Hey Van! Wait up," said Irvine as he got up and was about to take off after Van but a hand grabbed his wrist before he could go. Irvine turned around and saw that it was Dan and he gave a look that said that he wanted an explanation.

"Don't worry. Let Van go. I will have someone drive you back to your home. Ever been in a limousine?" asked Dan with a bit of curiosity at how Irvine would react to it. He got it when he saw a smirk cross Irvine's mouth. "Good. I will call for one," said Dan as he picked up a phone.

"I never thought that you were the one that was in charge here. I thought that it was that other man that was in here when we first got here," said Irvine looking around the room to see that he had left. 'Strange, I don't remembering him leave,' thought Irvine in confusion.

Dan hung up the phone before he answered. "That is the Vice-president for this company Derek. He is a very capable man. A bit too ambitious though. He was kind of upset when I said that Van would take over when I retired. I trust him though," said Dan as he stood up. "Come on. The limo should be here any moment," said Dan as he walked past Irvine and towards the doors. Irvine then took off after him.

"Irvine," said Dan as he stopped and waited for the elevator to get there. He looked behind him and saw that Irvine was waiting for him to tell him what he wanted. "Where was it that Van left to in such a hurry? I had some things planned that I will have to reschedule now," said Dan as the elevator rang and the two walked into it.

"His girlfriend was making him come to a dinner that she was putting on. I don't blame him for running off. He was late and that girl does not accept any excuses," said Irvine with a slight laugh.

"She is far more trouble than she's worth. I wonder why he sticks with her if she can be that demanding," said Dan as he pressed the button for the garage. "I also see how exhausted he is after he is with her. Like I said, she is more trouble than she is worth," said Dan with a sigh.

'I don't think I am going to be the one to tell him,' thought Irvine with a serious face. "I don't know but I think that he should dump her. He could definitely go for someone much better than her. I bet that if he gets any money, she will milk him dry within an hour," said Irvine with a loud laugh that Dan joined him in.

"I would have to agree with you there. She also has a really big mouth. I think she should learn to close it every once in a while. Sooner or later it is definitely going to cause some trouble," said Dan as the elevator reached the garage floor and the two of them walked out to see a limousine waiting for them.

"Listen, if you see Van. Tell him that I will talk to him a later. There were some things that are very important that I needed to discuss with him," said Dan as Irvine got into the limo.

"Sure thing. That is if I see him though," said Irvine putting an emphasis on the word if. "You will probably see him before I do anyways. There are a few things that I needed to do that will take the rest of my time today," said Irvine trying to get comfortable.

"If you do see him though, just tell him that. By the way, don't tell anyone about this. It is important that you don't. I want to keep Van out of the spotlight for now," said Dan in an important voice.

"Don't worry, I won't tell a soul," said Irvine in a sincere voice as he closed the door to the limo. Then the limo took off down the street. Irvine sitting in it happily looking over all that the limo had to offer.

Dan watched until the limo was out of sight before he turned around and walked back into the building with a smile on his face. "This sure has been an interesting day," said Dan to himself.

* * *

"Come on, come on," muttered Van as he drove down the streets as fast as he could without breaking the speed limit. He knew that he was going to get it when he got there so he figured that he had better not be any later than he was going to be.

He pulled his car into her long driver and could only curse. "Damnit! Why does she have to have such a long driveway? It is only going to make me even later," said Van with a groan of annoyance.

He then got down the driveway and after parking the car ran to the door only to find Amy was already there waiting for him with a little amusement. "Um, sorry I'm late. There were a few things that I had to do," said Van with a nervous smile as she just looked at him.

"Birthday gift?" asked Amy indicating towards where his new car was parked. The same expression remained on her face the whole time. It was a bit of a mix of amusement, confusion, a little happiness, and a bit of annoyance.

"Yeah. It is pretty cool isn't it?" asked Van proudly as he looked at his new car. "I also got a cell phone as well," said Van pulling it out. 'And a lot more than just either of these,' Van mentally told himself. He figured that he wouldn't tell her about it but by the look on her face, she already knew that he was keeping something from her.

"Really? Well that is great," said Amy putting on a cheery face. It was one that didn't really fool Van. "Now, come inside. You are already late and I am starving," said Amy grabbing his hand and practically dragging him into the house.

'I really don't like being here god. So will you please make these next few hours go by a little faster so that I can leave and enjoy the rest of my day,' Van begged into his mind as he was pulled through the doors and towards the dining room. He had nothing against Amy but both of her parents gave him the chills.

They were about to walk into the dining room when the door swung open and Amy's father walked out of it. It was almost impossible to read what it was that he was thinking about at that moment but Van could definitely tell that it wasn't anything good. Van was slightly afraid.

"Hello daddy. Van has finally gotten here," said Amy with a smile as she signaled to where Van was just dragged. She then used a lot of strength and pulled him forward so that her father and Van were now face to face.

"Hello sir," said Van a little bit nervously just like he always was in the man's presence. Van shrank back a little when he gave him a strange look before turning to Amy.

"Why don't you go in and wait for us. I need to have a little talk with Van," he said with a smile. He saw her nod before she walked into the dining room. The door closed and then he turned around. "Come with me Van," he said as he walked in the direction of his study.

"What is it that you want now Hiltz?" asked Van a little cautiously because he had no idea what Hiltz wanted with him now. He didn't reluctantly start walking after the man though.

As soon as the two of them were inside the room Hiltz spoke. "I am not dumb Van. I know exactly what has been going on," said Hiltz with a smirk on his face at the look of annoyance on Van's face. "I have known all along what your father has been up to. How he is the president of my biggest rival company. I hope you know that even though this is out in the open, you are still going by what we have gone over so many times," said Hiltz laughing at the look of fury that crossed Van's face.

"Why should I even do that exactly?" asked Van a little outraged that Hiltz could even think like he could still keep control over him even though nothing before counts anymore.

"I have a lot of things that I can use to ruin your fathers company," said Hiltz with a smirk at the look on Van's face. "I don't think that your family will enjoy that exactly. Or your mother more precisely. It doesn't have to get out though as long as you stick to the original plan," Hiltz said with a sadistic smile.

"You bastard," growled Van. He knew that Hiltz would use it against him if he were to ever find out about it. Van was now curious as to how he found out about it in the first place considering that not even Van knew about until a few hours ago.

"Life is never fair Van. Being in the business world can only make it worse," said Hiltz with a smirk as he started to walk away. "Oh, by the way, no talking about this little conversation with my daughter. She doesn't need to know about our little discussions," said Hiltz before he opened the door and walked out of the room leaving an extremely angry Van alone.

"Damn him. He is one of the reasons that I always hate coming here. Always finding new ways to make things worse than they already are for me," grumbled Van as he reluctantly followed Hiltz to go and eat. By the time that he reached the room he had cooled down a little bit and while putting on a fake smile that was more forced than anything he ever had to do in his life except for maybe going to school.

"Good you are here," said Amy pointing towards a seat that was right next to her. She kept an eye on Van as he walked over and sat down next to her. "What was it that you and my father talked about?" asked Amy out of curiosity.

Van took a quick look in Hiltz's direction and noticed him slowly shaking his head, meaning that he didn't want Van to say anything like he had told him to. "Nothing important. He just wanted to ask me a few questions," lied Van as he looked down towards his plate.

"Really, what about?" asked Amy seeing that Van seemed a little troubled by something and she knew that her father was the main cause of all of it. "What about Van?" Amy repeated her question since Van didn't answer.

"Wow! All of this looks really good," said Hiltz interrupting the little conversation. "So how did school go today?" asked Hiltz knowing what he was doing when he interrupted the conversation.

Van was sort of thank because Amy seemed to drop the subject and started talking about how the day went for her. 'He is the cause of all of this, and he does not want any of this to get out. God I hate him. Sometimes I wonder how he is related to his daughter. A lot of the time they act nothing alike,' thought Van bitterly as he sat leaned further into his chair.

* * *

By the time that the dinner came to an end, Van was more than glad to be able to get out of the place in order to get away from Hiltz. "Well, Dinner was great, thanks for having me," said Van as he tried to reach the door.

"No problem. Maybe we should do this again sometime," said Amy with a bright smile on her face as she watched Van retreating towards the door. "Maybe sometime later this month," said Amy with a smile still on her face.

'Much later,' thought Van although he didn't voice his thoughts. "I don't know. I have a lot of things to do. So it might be a while until I can try and make some free time. You know, with school and all," said Van as he reached the door.

"Then we will just have to try our best to make some time," said Amy still smiling. She then walked to the door with Van and walked out of it. The two walked out to Van's car where Van got into it. "Bye Van," said Amy as she gave him a kiss before he left.

"Bye," was all that Van said before he got the car moving and away from Hiltz. He realized that he was being kind of rude but Hiltz just sent a shiver down Van's spine whenever the two were around each other. Plus that and he was tired and he wanted to get home as soon as possible.

Amy watched as Van slowly drove out of sight with a smile on her face. When he was gone, her smile only broadened as she walked back into her house without a care in the world.

* * *

Fiona found herself walking all alone around the park that night. She knew that it wasn't a smart idea to do this at night because of what happened the first time that she did this when she first arrived in this town. However she couldn't sleep and she needed to get some fresh air.

Fiona suddenly heard the sound of a car coming up behind her. Just to be safe she moved off to the side but the car never passed. Instead it stopped right next to her. Fiona looked over to see that it was Van that was behind the wheel of the car. "Van?" asked a slightly confused Fiona.

"What are you doing out here at night? You of all people should know what happens if you are to do something like that," said Van with a smile as he saw Fiona standing there.

"Things turned out alright in the end didn't they?" asked Fiona as she faced Van with a smile on her face. She felt confident that nothing would have happened to her when she was out there that night.

"I guess. Come on. Get in, I will drive you back home to your house," said Van opening the other door for Fiona to get in. When he saw her get in a close the door he started to drive off in the direction of Fiona's house.

"Nice car, where did you get it?" asked Fiona quietly when she was looking the new car over. She wasn't aware that their family had enough money to buy something as nice as this car.

"My dad got it for me for my birthday, as well as a few other things as well. What turned out to be a bad birthday in the beginning turned out pretty good in the end," said Van with a small chuckle. Another thought then came to his head. "Is there something wrong Fiona?" asked Van quietly. Van knew that he had already asked her earlier that day but he knew that something was wrong.

"I already told you that nothing is wrong," said Fiona a little too quietly. In a way she was glad he was worried about her but she was not going to mention what was wrong with her.

"I know you said that, but I don't believe a word of it. I know something is wrong. When you want to tell me what is wrong, then I will listen," said Van settling for that instead of the truth for that moment.

'Thanks,' thought Fiona with a small smile. It was nice to know that he wasn't going to push the situation any further than it really needed to be at that moment. Fiona suddenly started to feel the sleep that she was having trouble getting earlier finally starting to come back to her.

Van drove down the road silently when suddenly he felt a light pressure being put on his shoulder. He turned his head slightly to see what it was while still keeping his eyes on the road. What he saw was Fiona with her head rested on his shoulder. Van could only smile as he drove up to her house. Instead of waking her up he just picked her up and carried her to her house.

Van walked back down to his car a few minutes later with the smile still on his face. He hopped into his car and took off down the road towards his house. He couldn't explain why it felt so right for Fiona to be in his arms for those few minutes, especially because he had a girlfriend.

Once he was at his house he immediately went up to his room and got ready to sleep because of how tired he was. As he laid there trying to sleep one thought suddenly struck his mind. He thought about all that Irvine had said to him earlier that day about Fiona being a good match for him. For some reason he couldn't get that thought out of his head and then another one popped up. 'Could I actually be falling for her?'


	12. invitation

A month or two had passed for Van ever since he found out his little family secret. Everything seemed to remain the same for him except for the constant work that his father put him through.  
  
Thoughts seemed to plague his mind easily lately. It had been plaguing him ever since his birthday. As much as he wanted to get rid of the strange thoughts, they always seemed to come right back and it was starting to really get to him. 'I am not falling for her,' he told himself mentally whenever the thought crossed his mind. He didn't like the thought about falling for his best friend when he had a girlfriend.  
  
Winter had come quickly for all of them. Their winter break was a mere few days away and almost everyone in the school was hyped up with the thought about being away from the horrid school.  
  
"You seem troubled Van. You need to cheer up with the thought of our break coming up. You are going somewhere for winter break aren't you?" asked Irvine with a smirk as the two played cards at Van's house after school one day.  
  
"Yeah, we are. Nothing is the matter though, I have a lot on my mind because of what my dad is putting me through," lied Van not really feeling like saying what was actually on his mind. He reached out and grabbed a card from Irvine's hand and then placed two cards on the table. They were playing old maid and Irvine's choice would affect who won the game.  
  
"So where is your old man taking you?" asked Irvine as his eyes skimmed from one card to the other from what was left within Van's hand. He picked a card and when he looked at it he made a funny face that almost made Van laugh. "Not funny," muttered Irvine as Van grabbed the right card and won the game.  
  
"Sure, it is as long as I am the winner. About where we are going, I believe he said that he is taking us up to a cottage in the mountains. Yet another thing I didn't know we owned until he told me. I wonder how many more secrets he is keeping from me," said Van with a sigh as he laid back on his couch and stared up at the ceiling.  
  
"That sounds like fun, I wish I could come but I am going to visit my grandparents," said Irvine without much enthusiasm. He might not have minded going there if they didn't treat him like a child and the place stunk of tuna from the many cats that they had in their home.  
  
"Well you can't so too bad, too sad," said Van with a smirk as he placed his hands behind his head and just let his mind wonder for a little bit. Thoughts that he did not want to come up ended up coming to the surface so he shook it off and sat up. "I can't wait to get as far away from here as I cab for a while. Get away from my troubles," said Van with a sigh.  
  
"What about your girlfriend?" asked Irvine in a way that said that he really didn't give a care. He didn't really know why he had asked in the first place if he didn't care but his curiosity got the better of him.  
  
"She tried her best to come along with us but as my father said, 'this is a family trip.' She wouldn't stop complaining about it for the next few weeks. While he may have said that it was a family trip, he also wanted to bring Fiona along because he thinks of her as a daughter in a way is what he said," said Van as Irvine shuffled the cards again getting ready for another game so he could beat Van.  
  
After hearing this, Irvine couldn't help but grin. 'Yeah right,' thought Irvine with his grin widening. "What did Fiona say about this?" asked Irvine as the smirk did not fade but it went by completely unnoticed by Van who was concentrating more on his cards rather than Irvine.  
  
"Haven't asked her yet. My dad just told me to ask her earlier today much to my confusion but I haven't seen her all day so I haven't been able to talk to her to see what she thinks of it,' said Van placing down a few cards and picking up a few since this time they were playing poker.  
  
"I don't think she would hesitate before she would say yes. Did you know that she has never actually been in snow before?" asked Irvine since he had known Fiona for most of his life. 'I think it would be a good thing for her to be able to go," said Irvine doing the exact same thing as Van. He looked at his cards and grin, "Alright, I got a straight, let's see you beat that," yelled Irvine thinking he had this won.  
  
"I win," said Van with a grin as he showed his hand to be a royal flush. Van laughed when he saw Irvine's expression change from happy to sad in less than a second flat. Van got up from his seat to go and get something to eat.  
  
Irvine quickly shook off his shock and got up and nearly ran after Van. "Hey! Get back here, you had to have cheated to get something like that. I demand a rematch," yelled Irvine too upset by his loss to stop shouting.  
  
"How could I have cheated if it was you who shuffled the deck and then you dealt out the cards," said Van as he rummaged through the refrigerator to look for food. He knew that he got Irvine with that one.  
  
Irvine was dumbstruck knowing that Van had a point with that one and that there was no way for him to counter it at that moment. "Oh brother," said Irvine as he smacked himself over the head.  
  
"So where is Moonbay going to this winter?" asked Van returning from the kitchen with a ham sandwich in his hand. "She isn't really on talking terms with me so I have to ask you about it," said Van with a serious expression.  
  
"I suggest you just tell her the truth. She will probably hurt you if she was to find out without either you or Fiona telling her that the two of you aren't enemies that hate each others guts," said Irvine knowing that Moonbay did have a bit of a short temper when it came to keeping secrets from her.  
  
"Maybe someday but not at this moment. I am having enough trouble keeping it myself. Amy tends to be a bit unrelenting to Fiona and it tends to make me want to reach out and help Fiona when Amy does stuff like that," Van replied with all honesty.  
  
"As long as you don't make me tell her then I am just fine with it because she might murder me and then murder you before either of us can tell her the reason behind why we had to keep it a secret," said Irvine as he cringed at the thought.  
  
"Maybe," muttered Van but his mind started to wonder a little bit back to his old thoughts that had suddenly popped up when he had mentioned Fiona. 'This is very wrong so I have to put it aside,' thought Van with a sigh.  
  
*****  
  
Fiona walked down the streets on the cold winter morning with a smile on her face. Despite how cold the day was that day, she enjoyed it. Her previous home never got this cold because it was always warm. This meant that she got no snow there and she hoped that it would snow here since she had never been in snow her whole life. So far however it appeared that there wasn't going to be any because the sky was cloudless. Even here she had yet to see any. It felt much colder here then it usually was in winter and she hoped that this year was going to be the year.  
  
'Just snow already,' thought Fiona with a slight growl as she stared up into the cloudless sky with sad eyes. It didn't hear her mental request and just remained cloudless much to Fiona's great disappointment.  
  
"It will do you no good to beg for snow Fiona. I know how much it is that you want it but it has almost never snowed here although it has come pretty close a few times. It just doesn't get cold enough. Then again, I guess that it does seem colder than usual but it won't do any good if there is no rain, and it is completely cloudless," came Moonbay's voice with a slight laugh as she suddenly appeared at Fiona's side.  
  
"One can always wish for things to happen even if it is impossible to have it at times," said Fiona but she suddenly realized another meaning that her little sentence actually had. 'It is just like with Van,' thought Fiona sadly as she looked towards the ground.  
  
"You look pretty sad, anything you want to talk about?" asked Moonbay as the two of them stopped because it was a Saturday and they did have to go to school. "You can tell me anything," said Moonbay with a proud smile.  
  
Fiona lifted her head towards Moonbay and gave her a small smile but anyone could tell that it was more of a forced smile than a real smile. "It's nothing. I am just having a few problems that only I can really take care of. I'm sorry," said Fiona once again looking down at the ground.  
  
Moonbay gave off an aggravated growl. "Why is it that you don't tell me anything anymore? It is almost like I am not enough of a friend for you to be able to confide in," said an annoyed Moonbay.  
  
"It isn't that. You are one of my best friends. My problem I haven't told to anyone. Not Irvine or V..." said Fiona before catching herself before she said Van's name and letting Moonbay know the secret. 'Maybe I should just tell her. It would allow my conscience to let go of its guilt.  
  
Although Fiona had managed to catch herself, Moonbay had heard what she had said before she stopped. She didn't know what it was but inside of her she seemed to know what it was that Fiona was going to say. A lot of things seemed to be coming together and she seemed to understand so much at that moment that it surprised her. "You were going to say Van weren't you?" asked Moonbay feeling herself starting to crack up since she hadn't seen it sooner.  
  
Fiona didn't know what to say. 'Oh well, I guess there is really no point in hiding it anymore since she obviously already knows,' thought Fiona as she hung her head and slightly nodded. "Yes, that was what I was going to say," said Fiona finding the weight upon her conscience being lifted. Fiona didn't know what to expect next. What she heard surprised her. Moonbay broke down in laughter. "What is so funny about all of this?" Fiona asked.  
  
"I just find it funny that I didn't realize it sooner. That time I saw the two of you in the hall, the huge rivalry that you have with Amy, and trying to keep it a secret for so long. I am just trying to figure out how I couldn't have seen it," said Moonbay stilling laughing much to Fiona surprise.  
  
It was the one thing that she did not expect to hear from Moonbay. She expected yelling, and screaming, and a lot more. But laughing was in the back of her mind. Fiona just stared until Moonbay had managed to calm down a few boring minutes later. "So, you're not angry?" asked Fiona with a slight bit of hope in her eyes.  
  
"Nope, I am very angry. You should have told me much sooner! I have been held in the dark for years because you refused to answer me whenever I asked you about this mysterious friend. I probably wouldn't have known if you hadn't let that little part of his name slip," said Moonbay glaring at Fiona who shrunk back a little bit.  
  
"I'm sorry. There is far more to all of this than you can even realize. That is the reason I still want to keep this a secret and I want to keep it a secret as well," said Fiona looking at Moonbay with a pleading look in her eyes hoping that Moonbay would be the friend that Fiona knew her to be.  
  
"Don't worry, you're secret is safe with me Fiona. Lets walk and you can tell me about what it is that is going on exactly," said Moonbay as the two of them walked down the street with no destination in mind.  
  
"To make it all simple, Van is stuck with Amy. Even if he wanted to he can't leave her out of fear for his mothers health. He tried to keep her happy which is the reason that he doesn't make his friendship with me known. I wish we could but it wouldn't be safe for her with Amy's father blackmailing Van into staying with Amy," said Fiona shocking Moonbay.  
  
"Why that son of a bitch. If I ever get my hands on her and her bastard father then I will make sure that I wring the last bit of air out of their lungs and take pleasure in their slow and painful death," said Moonbay with an insane laugh that cause Fiona to back away from her out of fear.  
  
*****  
  
Van and Irvine sat in front of a TV bored out of their mind as they watched a movie that didn't interest them in the least. Both of them felt like they were about to fall asleep since they stayed up all night doing things like this.  
  
Irvine let out a loud and long yawn. "So boring. Must have something fun to do soon or I will go out of my mind," said Irvine while his eyes started to close slowly like he was about to fall asleep.  
  
Suddenly there was a knock on the door and the two of them jumped up so suddenly that they nearly rammed right into each other. 'Please don't let it be Van's girlfriend,' Irvine begged mentally as the two of them walked towards the door and opened it up to find Fiona and to their surprise Moonbay.  
  
"Hey there boys. So good to see the two of you," said Moonbay still grinning like an idiot at her previous thoughts that day of strangling both Amy and her father and it caused her to laugh more causing Irvine and Van to back away with very scared looks upon their faces.  
  
The same thing was going on through both of theirs minds. 'She knows,' and it caused them to back away slowly. One word could describe their future situation in their minds that made them even more afraid of Moonbay, 'Death,' causing them both to flinch out of fear.  
  
"It is ok you two. She does know but I don't think that she was that angry about it compared to what the two of you thought she would have in store for us when she found out," said Fiona with a sigh as she walked into the house a bit sadly with Moonbay following right behind her. But the two of them still seemed a little cautious and kept at least two arms length distance away from her in case she tried to lunge at them.  
  
"How is it that Moonbay found out?" asked Irvine a little nervously as he backed away an inch or two to escape from Moonbay's grasp. He sighed when she didn't even try to grab either of their throats.  
  
"I kind of slipped up a bit while I was talking to her. You guys don't have to worry. She is just a bit... crazy at the moment because of a plan that she cocked up on the way here. She has no intention on strangling the two of you or hurt you in any way," said Fiona with a smile making the two of them sigh in relief.  
  
"That's good because for a moment there I thought that was why she was acting the way she was acting. It is a good thing though that that isn't the case for this situation," said Irvine as him, Fiona, and Van walked into Van's house where a now sane Moonbay was waiting for them. Irvine was glad to see that.  
  
"Although I am very mad at all of you for keeping me in the dark about all of this for such a long time, I guess that I can understand why it was the way it was when Fiona told me about your little predicament Van," said Moonbay in a calm voice. "I warned you back then though. I knew that you going out with her would only bring trouble. I warned you to stay away from her. You should have listened to me and then you wouldn't be in your current situation," said Moonbay in a proud tone because she knew that she was right all this time.  
  
Van sighed, not really feeling like arguing with Moonbay at that moment. He was tired and all he wanted to do was sleep. 'Then again, I still have to talk to Fiona about the trip,' thought Van, he opened his mouth to say something but at that moment the phone just had to ring. 'Damn it,' thought Van with a growl as he walked towards the phone.  
  
"You two sure don't look too good," said Moonbay examining the huge bags that were forming under Irvine's eyes. He could barely stand up too straight and his eyes kept flinching every few seconds since he was trying to best to stay awake. His eyes were bloodshot as well.  
  
Irvine let off a loud and long yawn while leaning again the wall for support. "Van and I stayed up all night and I guess you can say that we are very tired," said Irvine yawning once again.  
  
"Why don't the two of you go to sleep? We will just talk about this a little later," said Moonbay before she turned around and grabbed Fiona pulling her out of the door very quickly before Irvine could say anything.  
  
Van walked into the room a moment later and the first thing he noticed was that Fiona and Moonbay weren't there anymore. "Where'd they go?" asked Van as he walked to the door and looked outside only to see no one there.  
  
"They left about a minute ago saying that they would talk to us later and that we really need to get some sleep. I agree with them completely," said Irvine walked by Van with a slouch as he headed to the guest bedroom to get some sleep.  
  
"Damn it! I didn't get to ask Fiona about the vacation. I guess I will just have to wait a little while longer before I will be able to ask her," said Van with a sigh before he did the same and Irvine and headed to his bedroom to get a little sleep so he wouldn't end up falling asleep without even knowing it if something important was to happen.  
  
*****  
  
School the next week was kind of boring. Everyone's minds were in places besides what they were supposed to be doing at that moment. People were thinking about their upcoming vacation and what it was that they were planning on doing for their time away from school.  
  
Fiona didn't have anything to do for her vacation. All of her friends were going away for the holidays and her own parents were leaving on a trip alone. They wanted to bring Fiona along but there were some important issues that had kept Fiona from coming. Fiona had this strange feeling however that there was more to it than that. Fiona felt a little left out but she kept quiet and didn't say anything to anyone.  
  
Fiona walked through the halls of the school quietly and looked around her to make sure that Amy wasn't around so she couldn't ruin her day like she had done so many times before then. No such luck however. Fiona could hear Amy talking from around a corner to who she probably guessed was Van.  
  
"Why can't I come with you Van?" asked Amy proving to Fiona that it was Van that she was talking to at that moment. "I know that you said that it was supposed to be a family trip but aren't I like family to you? So can I please come with you and your family? It will be a good chance for me to try and get along with your family more," said Amy in such a sweet voice that it made Fiona want to gag.  
  
"I already told you that I can't take you!" said Van in a tone that told everyone that he had had that one conversation too many times as it was and that he didn't want to have it anymore. "It is supposed to be a family vacation," said Van with an emphasis on the word family. "You are not a part of my family," said Van trying not to sound too mean but it wasn't hard to tell that he was losing his patience even more.  
  
'Not yet anyways, I am sure that at some point we will end up getting married, I just know that we will,' thought Amy with a slight smile that went unnoticed by Van at all. "Oh well," said Amy with a sigh but it turned to a grin. "At least I am not like that bitch Fiona. I heard that she is stuck here without any of her friends, and that her own family is taking off without her. What a loser," said Amy with a laugh that was hurting the ears of everyone around her.  
  
Van was very furious about her insults to one of his best friends but he kept quiet so as to not alert her to how he was actually feeling. "Yeah, I guess," said Van a very reluctantly while turning to look at anyone but the woman that was standing before him at that moment. 'Although there is far more to it than even you can think about,' he added mentally.  
  
"I know. She is always picking these fights with me because I am better than her in every way and she just can't take that so she is always trying to be better. Too bad for her it is far beyond impossible for her. She is just trying to be just like me," said Amy in such an arrogant tone.  
  
Fiona felt like she was about to break out in laughter. 'Me, want to be like her? That is way too funny,' thought Fiona as her body shook under the intensity of her suppressed laughter.  
  
"What are you laughing at," came Moonbay's voice so suddenly that it made Fiona jumped a bit from her little area where she had been listening in on their conversation.  
  
"You startled me Moonbay," said Fiona clutching her chest trying to suppress the rapid pounding that made her feel like her heart was going to explode. "It is nothing though. Just something stupid that I overheard Amy talking about," said Fiona but before she could tell Moonbay about it Amy interrupted her.  
  
"Well look what we have here. If it isn't the loser squad," said Amy with a smirk while she walked towards the two of them before she stopped a few feet away like they were a disease that she would catch if she had gotten any closer to them. She continued to wear the annoyed smirk that was constantly getting on everyone's nerves, not just Fiona's and Moonbay's.  
  
"Yep, and proud of it!" said Moonbay with a laugh as she wrapped her arm around Fiona shoulder just to mock Amy a little. "We are the ever expanding geek squad as you put it," said Moonbay taking a look towards Van when Amy wasn't looking at the two of them. "Why don't you join us? You could be the head of the geek squad since we are leaving soon," she continued making Amy start to fume more than usual.  
  
"I know that you would like for me to join this pathetic little team of yours but I have better things to do than hang around with you two losers," said Amy with a disgusted look on her face. She then turned and faced Fiona. "Don't think I didn't hear you listening in on my little conversation. I know that you want to be just like me but it is impossible," said Amy with a laugh.  
  
"Why would she want to be just like you? As far as I am concerned she is far better than you in every way," said Moonbay stepping forward proudly with a smirk on her face while she watched Amy fume a little bit.  
  
Oh yeah. Well if you are so confident in that then why don't you just try to name the things that you think she is better than me at?" asked Amy putting an emphasis on the word think because she felt that Moonbay wouldn't be able to come up with anything to back up her words.  
  
"If I did that then this would take all day but I will just start with the basics for you basic little mind. She is smarter, faster, kinder, and more athletic, not to mention better dresser, and much more beautiful," she stopped and took a quick breath. 'Not to mention she doesn't have to have her father blackmail someone in order to stay with her,' thought Moonbay with a smirk. "Oh I could just go on for hours if I wanted to but I think that those are the best I can use to sum it all up," said Moonbay. "Now if you will excuse us, we have much better things to do," said Moonbay grabbing Fiona and walking off.  
  
They both heard a loud growl of frustration come from Amy a few moments later and also the very amused look that spread across Van's face while they passed by him on their way to their homeroom. They next heard a yell of; "Come back here!" from Amy but Moonbay didn't even turn around when she flipped her off.  
  
Amy was a very furious. "How the hell could she tell such a lie like that and then make it seem like it was my fault? Then she has the audacity to flip me off like it was of no big deal to her at all," said a pissed off Amy. She heard giggling around her and turned to see that there were many people watching the previous exchange of words. As she as she spotted them they all turned their heads away as if they hadn't been listening in. She just growled one last time before she grabbed Van and literally dragged him down the hall to their homeroom.  
  
*****  
  
It was now two days before they would finally get out of school and Fiona found herself laying on her bed just staring at the ceiling that night with nothing to do. "This would to be the worst vacation I ever had," Fiona told herself sadly. She turned upon her sides but then there was a knock on her door.  
  
"Yes?" asked Fiona sitting up on her bed as her mother walked into her room with a small smile upon her face while she was holding a phone in her hand. It didn't take Fiona long to realize that someone had called asking for her.  
  
"Van is on the phone. He says that he needs to talk to you about something," said her mother but Fiona could tell that she was hiding something and her next statement revealed it. "Oh, by the way, the answer is yes," she said before she walked out of the room before Fiona could question her about what she meant.  
  
"Hey Van," said Fiona once again laying back down upon her bed. She listened but she didn't receive a reply from Van. "Van?" asked Fiona a little louder to see if maybe he didn't hear her the first time that she called him.  
  
"Oh, hey Fiona. Sorry about that. I had to do something really quickly," said Van finally replying to her. "Listen I called to ask you something so I had best just get down to the point. My family is heading to the mountains for winter break and my dad told me to tell you that you are welcome to come along with us if you wanted to," said Van in a happy voice that it would be Fiona and not his girlfriend, Amy had been really bossy lately and he really needed a break from it.  
  
"Wasn't it supposed to be a family vacation? I think that is what I heard you say at school when she was pretty much begging you to take her along with your family," said Fiona a little confused.  
  
"That was just an excuse that my dad used to keep her away. He never really did like her. He thinks of you as a daughter to him though and that is why he said that he wanted you to come along with us. So how about it? Are you going to come with us or not?" asked Van with a bit of hope in his voice.  
  
Fiona thought about it for a second. She figured that she had better ask but then the words that her mother had said to her came back to her at that moment about her answer being a yes. 'So she knew before I did,' thought Fiona with a small chuckle. "Yes. I would like that very much," said Fiona happily.  
  
"Great. We are going to be leaving the day after school lets out so just be prepared for it. We are going to be leaving rather early in the morning and heading up to the mountains. Apparently my dad owned a cabin up there that he never told me about until now. The best thing is that there was recently a lot of snow up there so it will be great for skiing and stuff like that," said Van knowing how Fiona would react to his statement.  
  
"Really?" asked Fiona with he excitement rising quickly at the mention of snow. 'Finally, I get to see some real snow. This is going to be great,' thought Fiona happily. "That's great. I can't wait for it," said Fiona happily.  
  
"That's good. I heard that you had never seen snow before so I thought you would be happy to hear about that," said Van as he smiled on his side of the line. "Listen, I have to go but I'll talk to you a little later about all of this," said Van and after receiving a goodbye from Fiona he hung up the phone.  
  
*****  
  
Fiona went into school the next day with a bright smile on her face at the change in her would have been horrible vacation. Now she would be going on a vacation with Van and his family. Things seemed to be going great for Fiona. 'Now I can spend a little time with Van and his family without Amy constantly taking up all of his time,' thought Fiona making her only smile even more.  
  
"You sure seem happy today?" came Moonbay's voice as she ran to catch up with Fiona. "Whoa!" said Moonbay even more shocked than she thought. Fiona wasn't just happy, she was positively radiating with happiness. "Uh, are you feeling ok Fiona?" asked Moonbay although she was glad to see her friend like this.  
  
"I am great! Never been better. Everything seems to be going my way now and I am glad for that," said Fiona continuing to walk but a little slower so that Moonbay could keep up.  
  
"You are smiling so brightly it is as if you soaked Amy in meat and set dogs on her," said Moonbay with a loud laugh attracting the attention of many upon the two of them. Moonbay immediately quieted down and turned to watch where she was going. "So what's up?" she asked.  
  
Fiona looked around quickly to make sure that no one was watching. The good thing about having Moonbay finally know the secret was that they could talk a little more freely with each other. Fiona then whispered into Moonbay's ear, "I am going to be going on a vacation with Van and his family, and the best thing is that Amy isn't allowed to go."  
  
Moonbay still found it kind of weird that Fiona and Van were actually friends but by the way that Fiona was talking it sounded as if it was something much more than just that. "That's great. Tell me though, is there something going on between the two of you?" asked Moonbay making Fiona blush.  
  
"Going on between who?" asked Amy suddenly showing up in front of the two of them. They were thankful that she didn't hear Van's name though. For once though, Van wasn't stuck with her. "Does little Fiona have a boyfriend? Who is it, that dork Thomas or some other desperate person that would go with anybody?" asked Amy before laughing a horribly high-pitched laugh that sent shivers down both of their spines.  
  
"I bet you would just love to know that but I guess we will just leave you in the dark about it all to keep you guessing. You would never be able to guess in a million years who it was," said Moonbay working her best to rub the secret in without telling who it was exactly.  
  
Fiona had to admit to herself that having Moonbay know might be a good thing. Being able to talk to her about it instead of just Van or Irvine might help her keep her sanity as well as laughs because she knew Moonbay was only going to make things much worse for Amy than before she knew about it. Although the things that were being exchanged weren't quite true, even if she did wish that they were even possible, Fiona just kept quiet and continued to listen.  
  
"It's not like I want to know. I was just thinking how desperate they must be to go out with someone like her," said Amy point a finger at Fiona with a disgusted look upon her face.  
  
'Van must have been desperate just to go out with you,' thought Moonbay with a small chuckle but she wasn't going to share her current thoughts with anyone at that moment. "Actually I would think that they are very smart if they want to go out with her," said Moonbay continuing to come out with comebacks.  
  
"Yeah, smart because she is so gullible that they could get her in their bed easily," said Amy with a laugh as she turned around and walked away but not before Moonbay and Fiona stormed by and they both stomped upon her foot as hard as they could while laughing.  
  
"This coming from queen slut," said Moonbay infuriating Amy and taking pleasure in it. She enjoyed inflicting pain upon her, call her a sadist or whatever, she didn't care as long as she could indulge in her new favorite pastime. "Fiona isn't like you. She doesn't jump in bed with every man or any for that matter, especially when you have a boyfriend," said Moonbay with a grin.  
  
"How dare you! I am not like that! You had best watch your back," growled out Amy as she stormed past the two and up to Van who had up to that point been watching the little conflict since he arrived at the school for a few minutes. "Come on Van. We need to show them who is in charge around her," said yelled grabbing Van and once again literally dragging him away from the two of them.  
  
"I believe that was a challenge. I will be sure to show her what I am made of when I come back from vacation. Don't want to get in trouble before then or I might not be able to go. So are you with me Fiona?" asked Moonbay turning to look at Fiona. Only to see her standing back away from where the recent verbal fighting had recently been going on.  
  
"I don't know," said Fiona a little reluctantly although it sure did sound kind of fun but it was not something that she would really do. "I am not sure about it," she continued.  
  
"Oh come on," begged Moonbay but all she go was a small shrug from Fiona. "Fine then. My offer is still open if you want to join in but for now I can do it and I am sure that Irvine would just love to join in for the fun. I have to do something quickly. I will see you in class," said Moonbay before running off.  
  
Fiona was thankful that this was the last day of school because she wanted to get away before any fireworks went off between them before school let out and she ended up being caught in the middle. 


	13. snowy vacation

Fiona's face rested silently and comfortably on her pillow. The sun had yet to even rise that day, but her plans for the day had put an end to any thoughts about sleeping in late when her alarm clock went off. She was seriously thinking about tossing the damn thing out the window at that moment.  
  
Her eyes opened and looked at the time seeing that it was only about five thirty in the morning. Van and his family were leaving early in the day about around six thirty, seven o'clock. Fiona figured that it would be best for her to get up early so she could be ready in time with a few minutes to spare.  
  
Fiona could only imagine what Van was like at that moment, because it was very common knowledge to everyone that he was anything but a morning person. More than likely one of his parents had to force him out of his bed in order to get him up. This only made Fiona laugh at the thought as she slowly got out of bed but she couldn't blame Van if he did put up a fight to get up because it was taking all of her self-control not to fall back asleep as well.  
  
She sleepily walked over to her dresser and grabbed a pair of fresh clothed to wear before she walked into the hall and towards the bathroom where she planned to take a nice warm shower in order to wake her up for a while.  
  
Fiona walked out of the bathroom a few minutes later a little more awake yet still very tired which was proven by the fact that she couldn't stop yawning. 'Whose bright idea was it to leave this early in the morning?' Fiona asked herself as she made a few last minute packing before she walked to the kitchen to get something to eat.

* * *

"Ahhh, nothing like the early morning to get started on this soon to be wonderful vacation," said Dan while stretching to the morning air as he packed as many suitcases as he could into their car. He was used to getting up that early in the morning but it wasn't the same for the other occupants of the house.  
  
Van, his mother, and even his sister Maria who had been at college for a few years, were all walking corpses since all of them were deprived of their beautiful sleep that they depended so greatly on.  
  
"Couldn't we have just of left a few hours later, rather than at six o'clock in the freaking morning," complained Van as he collapsed onto the couch in their living room with a loud yawn.  
  
"Where would the fun be in that?" asked Dan as he walked into the house with a broad smile on his face. "Why leave in the day and get their later when we can leave in the early morning and enjoy the fresh morning air. Where is your sense of adventure Van?" asked Dan as he took a seat beside Van.  
  
"I think I already packed it away," said Van resting his head back and he closed his eyes. Hoping to catch a few moments of rest before his father decided to say that they were leaving. 'Oh well, maybe I can catch a few winks on the way there,' thought Van with a loud yawn.  
  
"Are we going to be leaving any time soon?" asked Maria as she walked into the room with a tired look on her face although she tried her best in order to mask it. Maria was in a college a good distance away from there, so it was hard for her to come around every once in a while to visit. But she somehow managed it this time and was really looking forward to a vacation with her family as well as Fiona.  
  
Although Maria had been away for a long time, the few times that she was at home she had seen Fiona and the two had a nice sisterly friendship. The past few times she has also been wondering if maybe something was going on between Fiona and Van but she doubted it because Van was with Amy much to her displeasure. She figured that Van and Fiona would make an adorable couple but she just couldn't for the life of her figure out why Van stayed with the always-nagging Amy.  
  
Although Maria was the oldest child in the family, she knew that it was Van that was going to inherit the company, which she had known about for many years but kept it silent because her father wanted to be the one to tell Van all about it. She didn't think too much of it though. She was happy with how her life was as it is. Sure, she would still be inheriting part of the company but she felt that Van might make a better leader than her when he decided to grow up a bit, and see behind Amy's manipulation of him. She always voiced her complaints to Van but he never seemed to listen to her about them.  
  
"It will be a few more minutes, then we are going to pick Fiona up and then we will be off towards the lovely mountain resort that I have had planned out for the past few months," said Dan happily but he was cut off when the doorbell rang. 'I wonder who that could be at this time in the morning, Fiona knows we are going to be picking her up,' thought Dan as he got up but Maria was already walking towards the door.  
  
"Hello," said Maria with a smile as she opened the door but that dropped almost as quickly as it had appeared when she realized that it was Amy at the door. "Hello Amy, what are you doing here?" asked Maria in a monotonous voice.  
  
"Isn't it obvious, I am here for the trip," said Amy with a bright smile that Maria found positively annoying. Behind Amy were at the least four suitcases filled with thing that Maria wanted to know nothing about.  
  
Now Maria was annoyed. "You do know that this is a family vacation don't you?" asked Maria but Amy just seemed to ignore her while she was looking around for Van. Maria turned around and called out to Van. "Van, you did mention to her that this was a family vacation didn't you?" asked Maria making and emphasis on the word family hoping that he got her point.  
  
"Yeah, about five hundred times. She continued to ask and I keep telling her the exact same thing every time," Van called back before soft snores were heard from the living room meaning that he was about it fall back asleep or make them think he was so that they wouldn't ask him anymore questions.  
  
Maria let off a sigh knowing that Amy only did this hoping that they would just allow her to come along if she came by at the last few moments making them try to feel bad for her and let her come along, but they didn't have that sort of sympathy towards her. "Even though you have already been told, I will tell you again. This is a family vacation," said Maria getting very annoyed.  
  
"But I am sure that me and Van will eventually get married so doesn't that count as being part of the family?" asked Amy trying to put on her nicest face that she usually used and ended up getting whatever she wanted from those people. Too bad for her, Maria wasn't as stupid as most others in falling for that sort of thing.  
  
'Marry my ass. Not if I have anything to say about it,' thought Maria forcing a smile on her face. "Unfortunately, no, it doesn't," said Maria hoping beyond hope that she would get the idea.  
  
"But I already have all of my stuff packed and here. So can I please come with you?" begged Amy as she once again placed on her so called pleading face but once again it failed to change Maria's mind.  
  
"No, we will just have to get someone to drive you back to your house since it seems that your driver doesn't want to stick around," said Maria watching without amusement as a limo started to pull away from their house. Maria knew why she didn't drive herself as well; it was an attempt to force them to take her. If she had her own car then they would easily tell her to go home. Have someone take her and then drive off would mean she would have no way home so they might take her. 'Fat chance,' thought an annoyed Maria.  
  
Amy pouted with a fake expression of hurt on her face. 'Pity tends to be a good thing to use,' she thought to herself, but it failed when Maria turned towards Van with the same look on her face.  
  
"Van! Why don't you take your girlfriend back to her house and then pick up the last things we need before we head down there," yelled Maria before walking away leaving Amy standing at the door looking annoyed. If there was one thing that Maria was fully aware of, it was that Van didn't want anyone to know of his friendship with Fiona. She knew it was because of Amy that he did it because it was common information that the two of them hated each other.  
  
"Yeah, yeah," muttered Van while walking down the hall towards the door. He was still very tired, letting of a long and loud yawn every few seconds. He thought it would be a wonder if he didn't fall asleep before he got to the door. He did manage it however.  
  
The drive to Amy's house, or rather mansion, was a really quiet one. Well it was quiet on Van's part, however his girlfriend was going on and on about how unfair all of this was for her. She also had many other things to complain about as well, most of it Van didn't even feel like hearing. However, it was composed of Fiona, certain teachers at school that she didn't like, and then it was back to Fiona. Van couldn't take much more.  
  
Van found it as a great relief when the view of her estate came up. Van had one plan, drop her off and get the hell out of there before her father noticed. More than likely, he would find a way to let her come along but then that would mean that Fiona couldn't come and Van was looking forward to Fiona coming.  
  
"Van, are you sure that I can't come with you? I can do many things for you if you do allow me to come," said Amy in as sexy a voice as she could while Van rolled his eyes, but it went unnoticed by Amy.  
  
"Yes, I am sure. I have told you this so many times. So please understand this time," begged Van while preparing to leave. It failed when Amy started to talk the things that he didn't really want to hear at that moment.  
  
"Wait, Van. My father wanted to talk to you about something," said Amy quickly but she didn't hear the loud groan that escaped Van's throat and the increase of how nervous he was getting at that moment.  
  
"I am sorry but I am in a hurry. This will have to wait until I come back," said Van in a hurry. He was about to go before Amy gave him a quick kiss. Recently, her kisses didn't seem to have the same effect as they once did on Van. There was something about them that felt wrong. Van ignored this feeling however and backed away from the house while Amy was yelling at him to hurry back from his vacation.

* * *

Fiona was really starting to get bored. As it was, Van and his family were at least fifteen to thirty minutes later then they said that they were going to come by to pick her up. She was beginning to wonder why she woke up so early if they were going to be so late. She knew they were going to pick her up but something must be stalling them somehow.  
  
The long awaited knock on the door came and she rushed to it to find Van standing there slightly out of breath but he had a smile nonetheless on his face at the sight of Fiona.  
  
"Sorry if I am a little late. We had a little situation dealing with Amy because she appeared at our house all of a sudden trying to come along with us," said Van with a slightly nervous smile on his face. Seeing the sad look on Fiona's face Van continued. "We dealt with it though. I just took her back to her house and then came right here to pick you up. So we are in a bit of a hurry, so grab your things and well will be off," said Van walking past her to grab her larger suitcase while Fiona grabbed a smaller one. "Awfully light? Not packing much?" asked Van lifting the light bag.  
  
"I just packed what I would need and nothing more. My parents also gave me a bit of money in case I would need something and then I could buy it," said Fiona with a smile while she threw her bag into the trunk of his car before hopping into the passenger seat.  
  
Van was in the car before she even realized it and then they were off on a vacation that she felt that she would never forget. There was something in the back of her mind telling her that something strange was going to happen but yet she paid no attention to it.  
  
It wasn't long before the two of them were outside of Van's house where his family was ready and waiting for the two of them to get there so they could be off immediately.  
  
"About time that you got back Van. I suspect that Amy held you up for a little bit after you dropped her off at her house," said Dan with a smile as he grabbed Fiona's luggage out of the truck and placed it in the back of their almost completely full car. If it wasn't for the fact that the car they were using had a huge trunk, then it was almost a certain that not everything would fit in there but they were lucky.  
  
"Now, if everyone is ready then lets get going because I want to get back to sleep," announced Van making everyone laugh as they piled into the very spacious car. Van almost immediately tried to fall asleep as he laid his head back and closed his eyes.  
  
Fiona took her seat and stared out of the window as Dan pulled out of the driveway before taking off down the street. The houses went sweeping by them but they slowly started to become fewer and fewer as they were nearing the edge of the town and into the countryside.  
  
The scenery was beautiful, it may have been getting colder outside from the change in altitude but the trees had turned beautiful shades of orange and yellow as the leaves scattered across the ground.  
  
Fiona felt like following Van in trying to get some sleep but for some strange reason, she was unable to. She was tired before they left but now she felt wide awake. She guessed it was because of anticipation though. Just to see the beautiful snow was like a dream come true and she just couldn't wait to get there.  
  
"How far away is this place?" asked Fiona quietly to Dan who appeared to be the only other person awake at that moment except for Fiona. Both Maria and Van's mother had fallen back asleep at some point as well. Van was long since asleep since they had left the house.  
  
"It is quite a bit away from here. I would say that we will be the by the late afternoon. It will all be worth it in the end though. You should go to sleep for now. We have a long day ahead of us," he said while keeping his eyes on the rode ahead of him.  
  
Although Fiona didn't even feel the least bit sleepy, she at least gave it a try. Maybe she was more tired than she thought she was because a few minutes later she was fast asleep like the rest of them.

* * *

Fiona had no idea how long she had been asleep but it all ended when she was gently shaken a little by van. She didn't really want to get up but he was insistent. "Come on, get up Fiona," said Van as Fiona finally cracked her eyes open a little.  
  
"What time is it? How long have I been asleep?" asked Fiona looking out the car to see that the sun had already risen in the sky. She felt very tired still but she did eventually manage to wake up.  
  
"It is probably about nine in the morning right now. We just stopped for a little while to pick something up to eat. I was told to wake you up so that you could get something to eat as well," said Van with a smile as he stepped back to allow her to step out of the car.  
  
Fiona got a good look at the place that they had stopped at. It might have been out in the middle of nowhere but it was still a very nice looking restaurant that appeared to still get a good amount of customers despite its location.  
  
"We come here almost every time that my family goes traveling. Really good food if you ask me. You should try it yourself though if you want to really see how good it is," he said as he walked ahead and into the diner with Fiona following after him shortly after.  
  
Van's entire family was already waiting inside to be seated by the time that Fiona had walked in. She was lucky that they wouldn't have to wait a long time to be seated because she was getting very hungry by the smells that were coming from the place. She looked around and saw the one thing Van would probably go crazy for, an all you can eat buffet.  
  
"Ah Dan, so good to finally see you again. It has been far too long since you and your family has stopped by here," said an important person off to the side that Fiona could only guess was the manager. The manager looked in the direction and noticed Fiona standing with him. "I see you also have another in your party this time," he said with a friendly smile.  
  
"Yeah Bob. We are taking her with us on our vacation because she is a good friend of Van's," said Dan indicating towards Fiona. "She is a very nice young lady so no need to worry about her misbehaving," said Dan.  
  
"I don't have any doubts about that is she is on the good side of most of your family. Wait a minute, I thought that Van's girlfriend had him on such a tight leash that he wasn't even allowed to look at the opposite sex," he said making the entire family and even Fiona laughed except for Van because almost everyone knew that what he said was true.  
  
"What she doesn't know can't hurt her and I could really not care less, I may be going out with her but she doesn't rule my life," said Van with a huff as he walked right past them all before they could take any more shots at him.  
  
"Anyways, it is so good to finally be able to see you again after all this time. Go ahead and take a seat and get eating. This time it is all on me so feel free to eat to your hearts content," he said as he moved aside to let them sit down. He then whispered into Dan's ear, "I like this one a lot better than that other one. Why couldn't Van be with her?" he asked with a laugh.  
  
Dan just chuckled a little and shrugged his shoulders because he didn't know why Van stayed with his girlfriend in the first place. He would be glad if Van did get together with Fiona though. She was the type of woman that he would love to have for a daughter in law in the future. That was really Van's decision though. He could always hope that in some way it would end up happening.  
  
Their breakfast seemed to be fun and full of laughter. Most of the laughter was also directed towards Van much to his disappointment. Everyone seemed to like teasing him about Amy and it was starting to get on his nerves a great deal.  
  
"That's it!" he yelled as he got up out of anger and walked out to get some fresh air to clear his head a bit. Fiona just watched him go and she felt kind of sorry for him. He was in it for his family and they were the ones that were teasing him about it. She really couldn't blame him but they didn't even know the whole truth about all that was going on.  
  
Fiona waited a few moments before she got up and walked out of the doors after Van. She found him behind the restaurant sitting on a rock overlooking the beautiful scenery that was below them since the restaurant was on the side of a rather low cliff but just high enough to see over the trees.  
  
"You ok Van?" asked Fiona as she sat down on the large rock right next to him. The temperature outside was very nice even though it was in the middle of winter but it felt like it was dropping very rapidly.  
  
A light breeze came out of nowhere and blew some of Fiona hair freely off to the side. Van seemed to be enraptured by the sight but he quickly shook it off before turning to face the direction of the beautiful scenery. "I am fine. I was just a little annoyed with what they were doing. I know they don't like her but it is still annoying to hear them talking like that," he admitted with a sad frown.  
  
"Why don't you just tell them the truth about what is going on? Your father is a businessman, he might be able to think of something to do for this sort of situation," said Fiona quietly but just loud enough for Van to hear.  
  
"I can't tell them! They might just blow this more out of portion than is actually necessary. It isn't really that big of a deal anyways. I will find a way out of this on my own," said Van in the stubborn sort of way that he was used to using when he talked about the subject.  
  
"It is a big deal Van! It is ruining your life by continuing to follow by it. If you don't want any help then I won't push the subject, but I really think that you should talk to them about it. This is right for you to have to go through this. You should be able to live your own life and not one that is forced upon you," said Fiona sadly as she stood up and prepared to walk back into the restaurant.  
  
"Fiona," said Van making her stop to listen. "I thank you for your advice but I do feel that I need to solve this by myself. If it gets too out of control then maybe I will but it isn't that far yet. Thanks for the concern though," he said standing up and walking ahead of Fiona before she could actually move again.

* * *

For a while after that the trips was made in complete silence with the only sounds being of Van arguing with his hand held game that he was playing to pass the time. other than that it was perfectly quiet. Maria was reading a book and their mother was trying to get some more sleep. Van's father just plain wasn't saying anything since he was driving the car.  
  
Fiona looked out of the window to see that it was fogging up a bit because of the cold air. She was getting happy with this because she thought that it might just snow at any moment. Her thoughts were proved when a moment later, despite the speed of the car, she saw a few snowflakes start to fall.  
  
"Can you please stop the car real quick?" Fiona asked Dan quickly with plenty of excitement in her voice. It was the first time she saw snow and she wanted to be out there at that moment.  
  
Dan didn't even have to ask why because he had seen it as well. he was well aware about Fiona never seeing snow from his son Van. This was new to Fiona so he wanted to make her happy by being a good host. "Of course," he said with a smile.  
  
The car came to a quick stop and before anyone could say anything she jumped out of the car as the amount of snowflakes started to come down in even larger amounts than they had been just a second before. It was like nature knew Fiona's plea.  
  
Van stepped out of the car with a smile on his face when he saw what Fiona was so happy about. He had been in snow a few times but he never got that tired of seeing it fall for the first time that season, or at least for him. "So what do you think Fiona? Is it everything that you thought it would be?" he asked as everyone took their leads and got out of the car as well.  
  
"It is cold but also wonderful. I feel so great just being able to be out in it," she said with a smile that could light up a room. She could not think of a time that she could possibly be happier than this for a very long time. Ok, there was one that she wished for that would definitely make her happy but it was something that could not happen.  
  
"It will be even better than this when we reach the cabin that we will be staying in. The snow has already fallen in a pretty good amount down there so there will be plenty for you to see when we get there," said Dan walking up to his son and Fiona.  
  
"I can't wait, I would really like to see that very much," said Fiona looking up at the sky as a number of snowflakes came down and landed on her face. The coldness and wetness on her face felt good at that moment.  
  
All good things had to come to an end though. She knew that if they wanted to get there as soon as possible that they would have to get to driving again, tearing her away from the lovely snow that was falling around her or at least for the time being.  
  
Soon they were all in the car once again and it was silent as the car continued to drive down the road slowly because the snow was really starting to come down a bit and they needed to drive slowly to avoid slipping and crashing. Fiona had every bit of faith in Dan's driving so she wasn't all that nervous about it all.

* * *

"Beautiful," muttered Fiona many tiring hours later when the view of the beautiful snow filled mountain came into view. That was where they were staying. That is where she was planning to have one of the best vacations of her life. She felt that nothing could make things go wrong this time around. It was just Van's family and herself. No Amy meant that it would be even better.  
  
A rather cozy looking cabin came into view soon enough. It was all by itself with one the snow covered trees surrounding it but Fiona was well aware that there was a lodge a mile or two away from there accord to something that Dan said along the way.  
  
The car came to a stop right in front of the cabin and everyone got out of it and went inside leaving the baggage out for at least that one moment. It wasn't like they were going to just leave them there for the whole vacation.  
  
The inside was beautifully decorated with a nice fire already started for the cold night that was sure to come. The cabin was a wooden one and was rather large. It had several rooms, enough so that everyone would be able to have their own and no one would have to share.  
  
The rooms inside the house by themselves were very comfortable as well. It was very decorated since it only had a bed and a dresser with a lamp on it but the room was very roomy and the bed was probably more comfortable than her bed. Fiona had to wonder if she would have a problem separating from the place when it was time to leave.  
  
"So what do you think Fiona? It is nice isn't it? Kind of makes me wonder what other things that they own that I still don't know about," said Van with a smirk as he stood in the doorframe with Fiona's suitcase right behind him. He then quietly walked into the room carrying Fiona's suitcase until he put it by her dresser. "Here you go, all of your stuff. You're going to need it for tomorrow. We can do many things like skiing, snowboarding, anything that has to do with snow. I also heard that the lodge has a nice heated indoor pool for the heck of it. Neat thing to have in the winter time," said Van with a smile on his face.  
  
It was only then that Fiona realized something that she hadn't thought about when she decided to come on this trip. "Um Van, I um... I don't... I don't really know... how to do anything like snowboarding and skiing," she admitted with a slight blush of embarrassment although she wasn't really sure as to why.  
  
Van looked at her for a second with a dumbfounded look on his face. "Don't know how to huh?" he asked as a wicked grin spread across his face. He had a great idea on what to do.

* * *

"I am so going to kill you Van," Fiona yelled as she plummeted down the rather small slope that Van so graciously pushed her into. He had been teaching her all day and now he decided to pull this on her. She had one thought on her mind when it came to Van then, pain.  
  
Van was laughing his head off. He had this sort of thing planned all day. teach her a little and then pull this sort of stunt that he knew he would regret later. He didn't care because he thought it was funny as hell.  
  
Van laughing stopped all of a sudden as he noticed Fiona do a face plant into the dirt. He quickly rushed over to her on his snowboard and noticed that her face was planted into the ground while her butt was sticking straight up in the air. "Now that is an attractive position," he said with a laugh since he knew she was just fine.  
  
Van quickly sat up because she knew what he was talking about. Her face was so red at that moment that she could have easily have been mistaken for a tomato. "That was not funny!" she yelled at him making him back off a little.  
  
Van was slightly nervous but he approached her with an outstretched hand. "Then I am very sorry for doing that to you," he said with a sincere face waiting for her to take his hand so he could help her onto her feet. He then noticed the gleam in her eyes and knew he made a mistake. He was correct when a moment later she grabbed his hand and pulled it so hard that he went flying face first into the snow like she had a minute ago. He quickly dug himself out and stood up. "Ok, I guess I deserved that," he muttered as he once again held out his hand to help Fiona up and luckily this time she took it peacefully.  
  
Fiona slowly got back onto her feet with Van's help but unfortunately she lost her balance and fell forward into Van's hard chest. She blushed before she quickly backed away at the same time as Van. He appeared to have the same expression on his face. "Sorry," she muttered.  
  
"No problem. Maybe we should head over to the lodge, get something to drink such as hot cocoa," suggested Van trying to get off the subject of what just happened. His mind and his heart were starting to betray him. He could tell that his feelings for Fiona were becoming deeper but he refused to accept it. He knew that if he did it would only cause pain to so many people. He hoped to never figure any of these feelings out but it was getting harder and harder.  
  
"Um, yeah," said Fiona as she walked a little ahead of Van. She didn't show it too much but she felt very comfortable when she accidentally fell into Van. She loved him but it was wrong and she knew it that was why she pulled away fast it was to avoid doing anything that should not have happened.

* * *

The lodge had a warm feeling to it. Many other people that were also on vacation were scattered all around the place. It was possibly more beautiful yet less comfortable then the cabin that they were staying in.  
  
A warm blazing fire stood right in front of the couch that Van and Fiona were currently sitting on while drinking the hot cocoa. Neither of them seemed to be talking to the other. It was an uneasy silence but it gave them both a little time to be able to think.  
  
'Come on, you know you liked the feeling of her in your arms,' his mind seemed to be taunting him by saying things like that. 'You need to admit the truth to yourself or else it is going to end up driving you insane. Admit it you love her, you love her, you love her,' it kept on taunting him.  
  
'No I am not in love with her! Got that? No, I am not!' Van yelled to his mind in an attempt to deny what he knew was starting to become very close to the truth and that was something that he was hoped beyond anything would not happen because it would end up hurting both Fiona and Amy. He did not want anyone to get hurt which was the worst problem out of all of this. He couldn't help the growl that escaped his throat at the thought of it all.  
  
Fiona heard the growl that escaped Van's throat and turned her head so that she looked at him. "Is something wrong Van?" she asked and Van turned towards her with a questioning look on his face. "Well I just heard you growl and I was wondering if something was wrong," she said quietly.  
  
Van felt like slapping himself for growling out loud. "Um, no. I was just thinking about something but nothing is wrong," he lied although there really was something seriously wrong at that moment.  
  
Fiona just knew that he was lying. He wasn't the type of person that was very good at it in the first place. "Ok then, if you don't want to tell me then you don't have to," Fiona said sadly.  
  
'Figures,' Van said mentally. 'I guess she just knows me better than anyone else I know because of how good of friends we are,' he thought with a sigh. She knew him just like he knew her, another thing that was driving him nuts. They were too close to each other and not just physically but on an emotional basis at times. The bad thing was that he didn't mind having it a lot of the time.  
  
"I am going to head back. Are you going to stay here or would you like to come with me?" asked Van while standing up and stretching a bit. He looked to Fiona for an answer and she just shook her head. "Ok then, be careful," he said before slowly walking away in case she changed her mind. When he saw that she didn't he walked a little faster and soon Fiona was left behind.

* * *

Night soon came and while everyone was fast asleep, Van found himself wide- awake and just staring at the wooden ceiling. He mind was a mess; he was starting to get frustrated with the smallest of things. Needless to say, he knew he wouldn't get any sleep that night.  
  
Van threw back the covers and stood up. He needed to get out and do something at that moment. He had an idea of what to do so he quickly grabbed the supplies that he would need and then took off out of his room.  
  
He was about to reach the door when a voice stopped him in his tracks. "Where are you going Van?" came his sister Maria's voice causing Van to jump a little but he calmed down and showed her what he was holding. "I see that we had the same idea," she said with a smile as she showed what she had. "Come on, I want to talk anyways," Maria said before walking out with Van.  
  
After a small yet cold walk they reached the location they were going for, the lodge. There were still a few lights lit up because of the few people that were still up, it wasn't that late at night but just late enough for most to be asleep.  
  
Van and Maria walked into the pool area of the lodge. There were maybe one or two other people in the pool but it was relatively silent in there. The first thing Van did was set his stuff down and went into a locker room to change into his bathing suit. He walked out a minute later and immediately jumped right into the pool.  
  
Maria came out a few minutes after that and did just the same as Van. The two of them just seemed to swim around the pools for a few minutes before either of them spoke. "I just don't get it," said Maria with a sigh.  
  
"Don't get what?" asked Van as he stopped his swimming to look at his sister. He had a feeling that this was what it was that she wanted to talk to him about. He was very curious as to what it was as well.  
  
"Amy," Maria stated simply making Van groan a little bit. "I remember once a few years ago just before you started to go out with Amy you mentioned the type of woman that you wanted. Yet Amy seems to go against all that you had wanted at the time. I just don't see why you go out with her when you are unhappy about it," said Maria not even looking at Van.  
  
"Who ever said I was unhappy? My life is going along just fine right now," said Van swimming a little on his back while just staring up at the ceiling like he had done in his room not all that long ago.  
  
"Nobody has to say anything to know that you are not too happy when you are with her. It seems that you are more happy to be with your other friends," said Maria leaning against the side of the pool watching her brother who had a look like he wasn't paying attention but she knew that he was.  
  
"I really don't feel like talking about this subject. It is just more complicated than you can probably understand. My life is more complicated than you can understand as well," he knew if she kept this up that he would probably end up telling her all about what was going on with his life. When they were younger he used to always confide in her, and it just seemed natural to do so but he did not want to this time.  
  
"I can tell that if you could, you would probably be out of that relationship. So what is the problem Van? Why is it that you are in that relationship when it is clear that you heart isn't and is possibly elsewhere?" asked Maria in a solemn tone.  
  
Van knew he was going to regret what he was going to say but he knew he couldn't keep this inside for too long. "It is because sometimes I feel trapped. My heart is anyplace but in the relationship I have with her. You were right, I am not as happy as I thought I would be when I first started to go out with her. When it first started I didn't have the same problems that I have now. Things just got harder from since then," he admitted quietly but he knew that Maria ad heard it.  
  
Maria was starting to feel like she knew what was going on at that time. "You mean you can't get out of it?" asked Maria to see what his response to it would be. She wasn't prepared for what she heard though.  
  
"I do care for Amy just not the way that she wants. I can never care for anyone the way I used to because of the fact that I am forced to stay with her," said Van before diving under the water and away from any more questions. He didn't want to tell her but he knew that it would soon be an inevitable thing to do.  
  
"Forced to?" asked Maria in shock to herself since Van was still underwater. 'I guess I see it now. Why he left a number of his friends in that time and why it is that his friendship with Fiona is such a big secret. Van was pretty much forced to do those type of things because of Amy and I have no doubt that her father had something to do with it at the time,' thought Maria waiting for her brother to surface.  
  
Van surfaced a few moments later and spoke before Maria had a chance to talk. "Moms health has been hung over my head for years by Hiltz. He knows of ways that can hurt her health badly and the only way I can stop him from doing such a things is to remain with Amy. She makes demands and I had to follow them or bad things would end up happening to our mother," said Van slowly as he floated on the top of the water.  
  
"I thought that something like that was the reason. Van this is very serious. You should tell mom or dad about this," said Maria with urgency in her voice. She knew what Van was going to say though.  
  
"I can't Maria, that is one of the problems as well. I need to figure out what to do myself. Fiona told me to do the exact same thing early. I can't do that yet, if things take a turn for the worse then I will but until then I beg you not to talk about this to either mom or dad," begged Van as he swam to the side in order to climb.  
  
Maria heard the begging in his voice. It was his life to live. He would suffer if he didn't do anything but she knew that it would be wise to follow by his wishes. "Ok, I won't tell them, but only because I feel that it is your duty to tell them yourself. How many people know about this exactly?" she asked curious as to how many had been told before her.  
  
"Three people; Fiona, Irvine, and Moonbay. I told Fiona the day that she first came here when she was over at our house," said Van because he knew that Maria was sure to remember that event. "When Irvine first came here he overheard Fiona and me talking and a few weeks ago, Moonbay forced it out of Fiona. Since I told you what you've wanted to know for a long time, I am heading back now. Remember not to tell anyone about this Maria," he said while drying himself off and walking to the locker room to get changed.  
  
Maria was starting to feel bad for all of the teasing that she had done to him because Amy. Now she just felt bad for him because his life was being molded to another person's selfish desires. Although Van had said that Hiltz was the one that was doing the blackmailing, Maria had a suspicion that Amy had something to do with it as well.

* * *

Van didn't really go back to the cabin at all the rest of the night. He seemed to just walk aimlessly for a while and once in a while go back into the lodge to warm up so he didn't freeze to death.  
  
It was now nearly five in the morning. Van stood by a small cliff on about a mile from the cabin. There wasn't as much snow in the area for some reason so her felt safer there. Truth be told he came here the previous morning as well because he couldn't get back to sleep when he woke up. The position had an excellent view of the sunrise. It would still be a while before it came up though.  
  
Van just sat there staring at the dark sky. He intended to maybe wake Fiona up so that she could come out and see it as well. He knew that she would just love to see it. his only task was to try and wake her up as well.  
  
With that thought in mind, Van stood up from his recent sitting position and started to walk in the direction of the cabin. He figured that he could get there, wake Fiona up and get back before the sun rose with a good amount of time to spare.  
  
It only took a few minutes before he walked into the cabin. Maria had come back and fallen asleep a while ago and now everyone that was staying there was asleep, except for Van.  
  
Van walked quietly up the stairs until he was in front of Fiona's room. Van hesitated for a second before he lightly pushed the door open and walked into the room. He saw Fiona sleeping peacefully and it killed him to want to wake her up but he knew that she wouldn't care as long as she got to see what he wanted to show her. It was one of those types of things that they just seemed to know about each other that always ended up being right. Very carefully he reached over and shook Fiona lightly yet hard enough to wake her up.  
  
Fiona's eyes slowly opened why it was someone was waking her up. It didn't even look like the sun was even up yet. "W-what's going on?" she asked since she wasn't fully aware what was going on around her since she was still mostly asleep at that moment.  
  
"Fiona, wake up. I want to show you something," said Van before he walked towards the door of the room. He stopped suddenly and turned around to see Fiona slightly sitting up with tired eyes. "I am sorry if I woke you up but I thought you might want to see this. So get dressed in your snow stuff and meet me outside," he said with a kind smile before he once again turned around and walked out of the door.  
  
Fiona was completely baffled. Not because Van had woken her up well maybe it was in a way but because he was actually awake at the extremely early time in the morning it wasn't even six yet. Usually he would end up sleeping till almost twelve unless a person forcefully pulled him out of the bed. But here he was up before Fiona. She couldn't quite figure out what was going on. All that Fiona did was tiredly put on her stuff and followed after Van.  
  
When Fiona walked outside Van could tell that she was still tired. He knew that she would get over it soon when he showed her what he wanted to show her. "Good, you decided to come," he said before grabbing her hand and lightly pulling her off in the direction that he came from earlier.  
  
By the time that Van arrived by his little spot, he knew that it would only be a matter of minutes before the sun rose. "Please sit down, it will still be a few minutes before it happens," said Van letting go of Fiona's hand and he sat down on the rock.  
  
Fiona didn't know what to say but she sat down anyways. She just sat there for minutes not knowing why Van had gotten her up. She had finally had it with not knowing and decided to speak up. "Van, what is this about?" she asked in a soft voice making Van turn towards her.  
  
"Just look forward and you will see exactly what I am talking about," said Van making Fiona turn her head and view the sight that was just starting to become displayed before their eyes.  
  
The sun came up in the horizon just beyond the mountains. Its rays of light shown over the icy ground below. Everything seemed to come to life as the light reflected off of the ice causing the ground to seem to sparkle right before them.  
  
Fiona found the sight more beautiful than anything that she had ever seen in her life. She also found it very hard to speak or to turn away from the sight either. She then felt Van's hand over hers. She didn't know if it was intentional or not but she didn't say anything. All that she did was turn to look at Van who was staring off into the horizon.  
  
Van felt Fiona's stare on him and he turned to look at her. It was then that he noticed that their hands were together. He didn't even realize that he had done that but for some reason his hand was refusing to let go of hers. The sight he saw in her seemed greater than that of the sunrise. The sun shone onto her face causing it to glow just like the icy ground below in the suns light. He couldn't tear his eyes away from this sight before him.  
  
Fiona found that she couldn't take her eyes off of Van as well. His stares made her nervous but it also sent a warm feeling into her stomach. Her body acted on its own accord at that moment. She couldn't stop as she moved up towards Van. To make it worse he was doing the same thing. She knew that if they didn't stop then both of them might do something that they might later regret but she couldn't stop or say anything.  
  
For what seemed like eternity although it had only been a minute or two, the inevitable happened, their lips came together in a small but sensual kiss. They couldn't pull away and it only deepened. They seemed to be like that until they were forced to break apart for air.  
  
Fiona was speechless and scared. "I'm sorry. T-that shouldn't have happened," she stuttered before she stood up and pretty much ran as fast as she could in order to get away before anything else could happen that could end up ruining her friendship with Van.  
  
Van just sat there not knowing what to do. He knew that he shouldn't have done that because he was with Amy but his body told him how right it felt. He was becoming even more scared of what this all meant.

* * *

For a great deal of the rest of the trip, the two of them seemed to try and avoid each other at any costs. After the incident they were too afraid to speak to each other because they didn't want to do anything to ruin their friendship but just by doing that it was starting to become worse.  
  
Christmas came and went and that day was the closest they actually got to talking but it was only about what sort of things they got with the rest of the Flyheight family. It was quiet after that up until New Years Eve.  
  
The tension could pretty much be cut with a knife and almost everyone had noticed that something was going on between the two of them. They were all confused but they didn't talk about it.  
  
Van was getting very aggravated with the silence that had gone on between the two of them for the past week. The next day they would be heading home and he wanted to talk to her and try to have a good time with what little time they had left.  
  
With that thought in mind he stood up quickly and walked off in an attempt to salvage what was left of their friendship. He didn't want anything to change between them so he was becoming desperate.  
  
He saw Fiona but as soon as she saw him, she tried to change the direction in which she was going to avoid him. "Fiona! Wait!" yelled Van catching her attention as she reluctantly stopped. "This needs to stop Fiona," said Van sadly when he caught up to her.  
  
"What does, our friendship?" she said looking down at the floor. If she knew that this sort of thing would happen between the two of them then she would have never of gone out with him that morning to see what he wanted to show her. "Does our friendship have to end all because of some mistake that we both made," she asked angry at the both of them but angrier at herself for letting what happened happen.  
  
Van felt a pain in his heart when he heard Fiona's words about it being a mistake. He was unsure as to why the pain was there. He ignored it for that moment so they he could continue. "No, I don't want things to change between us Fiona. You are my best friend. Can't we go on like that never happened?" he practically begged. There it was again, the pain that he felt earlier.  
  
Fiona just smiled at that idea. Although she didn't admit it, that was her first kiss and she wanted it but it pained her to think that even though it was with the person that she had fallen in love with, he was with someone else. She also didn't want to think about what would happen to their friendship because of something that she reluctantly had to admit shouldn't have happened. "Yes, I would like that very much. It was just a mistake, so we should just forget about it," she said with a smile but she knew that it was fake smile. 'It wasn't a mistake for me though,' she thought sadly but kept up a smile.  
  
"Ok then," said Van and then she just walked off with a smile still on her face. 'A mistake?' he asked himself and then suddenly everything became very clear to him as to why he had been hurt when those words were spoken. He reluctantly admitted the truth. 'I don't want it to be a mistake. I can't believe I am saying this but I can't deny it anymore, I am in love with Fiona. What the hell am I going to do?' he asked himself sadly. 


	14. hearts pain

Fiona twisted and turned within her bed as dreams of that day continued to haunt her. She shot up in bed and immediately pulled her knees to her chest where she just sobbed all of her pains and sorrows since that day several weeks before then. It was now February and she just couldn't seem to get over any of it.

At school people would see a happy young woman who looked like she didn't have a care in the world. On the inside she was pained. At the risk of losing her own heart she got the one thing that she longed for. This kiss seemed to haunt her when she was awake and when she was sleeping.

'Stop fooling yourself Fiona. You are only going to make it even more painful for yourself if you don't just forget about it,' her mind mentally scolded her. She knew it was right but she didn't want to forget it. It meant a lot to her even if it was something that shouldn't have happened.

It was her first kiss. It was something very special to her because she was both glad and sad that Van was the one to take it from her. She loved him that was why she was happy that it was him but she was sad because it couldn't mean anything because he already had a girlfriend. She knew that she wouldn't mind if it happened again but only under the circumstance that the two of them could be together.

It was only wishful thinking for Fiona to think that Van would sacrifice so much to be with her. He would hurt his family, and probably himself by doing that. She didn't even give a care about Amy if that was to happen. For all Fiona cared, Amy could be hurt and she wouldn't care. That was how much she loathed Amy and vice-versa.

Van and Fiona had hardly been able to even talk to each other since the incident on their vacation. Amy and school was taking up almost all of his time since she seemed to remained attached to him since he came back from his vacation.

Fiona had a feeling that it wasn't just that though that kept the two of them from even being able to talk to each other. They both must have felt that it would be very strange to talk to each other since they ended up kissing one another.

As if to rub everything into Fiona face, tomorrow was Valentines Day. Like every year before now, she was alone. It was almost Amy's objective to make Fiona alone by making sure that every hated Fiona and loved herself. This year she found that she had someone to love on that day and yet it is impossible for the two of them to even be together.

Perhaps it was just a cruel joke of fate that she fell in love with an untouchable person. She couldn't help the way that she felt. She also held the hope that maybe one day it could possibly make her dreams come true but for now she remained alone like she had been for so many years.

* * *

School, it was so hard to look at since it was the day before Valentines Day. Love was in the air and it made Van feel sick to the stomach. Love, the word sent shivers into his heart at the thought of what it really meant to him. For him it meant Fiona. For so long he tried to deny it but ever since their vacation he had not been able to get her or the kiss out of his mind.

Many would think by just the looks of it that Van and Amy were the ones that were supposed to be in love. 'If only they knew the truth about my feelings for someone that is supposed to be an enemy of mine,' Van thought staring towards the ground as he walked on mindlessly through the halls not hearing the loud voice of his girlfriend calling for him.

"Van! VAN!" she screamed pretty much into his ear but she was not receiving even the slightest response. 'What the hell is wrong with him today?' she pondered getting annoyed that he wasn't responding to her. In the end she hit him upside the head sending him flying to get his attention. Her jaw dropped when he just got up and continued walking in his zombie state.

'Damn bug,' Van thought not even realizing that it was his girlfriend that had nailed him upside the head only a few moments ago. Suddenly laughter filled his ears and he turned to see Irvine and Moonbay laughing while looking at him. "What're the two of you laughing at?" Van asked raising an eyebrow in confusion.

At his response, Irvine and Moonbay only burst out laughing even harder than before. Irvine managed to stop laughing long enough to explain it to Van. "Your girlfriend has been trying to talk to you, actually more like yell at you and you won't listen and when she hits you over the head you walk on like nothing even happened," he managed to say before bursting out laughing again.

'Is that what that was?' Van asked himself turning around only to find his fuming girlfriend. 'Uh oh,' he thought before she grabbed his arm dragging him away. Van knew that he had to be ready for a serious yelling at for doing what he did. He just sighed and prepared for what was to come.

* * *

Fiona walked into school that day to find several people talking and giggling about something making her very confused. She saw Irvine and Moonbay and walked up to them. "Why is everyone laughing?" she asked making Irvine and Moonbay turned to look at her. They proceeded to explain what had happened and by the end of it Fiona was giggling a little as well. "He actually did that?" she asked in an amused voice.

"Yeah, it was just too priceless. It was almost as if he hadn't even noticed he had been hit upside the head," Moonbay said barely managing to contain her laughter as the three of them walked in the direction of their lockers. When they reached Moonbay's locker, Moonbay opened it up and quickly shoved something into it before closing it.

"What is it that you just put in there Moonbay?" Fiona asked earning from her two very scary grins from Moonbay and Irvine. 'That type of grin cannot mean any good,' Fiona thought backing away.

"Before winter break, Amy pretty much set up a challenge for us. We have every intention of following through with it. There is just one obstacle that is in the way of our plan and we need to have it removed," she said before walking away heading towards homeroom.

Fiona knew she was right about the grins. She really did need to be scared when she saw those grins. She followed after the two of them with all sorts of different images popping up in her mind.

* * *

Irvine and Moonbay quietly slipped through the halls carrying supplies that they needed in order to go through with the plan that they had been setting up for the last few weeks since they came back from their vacation.

They came to a stop in front a small office that was situated near the classroom of the teacher that it belonged to, Mr. Prozen. Moonbay gave a slight chuckle when she reached up and knocked on the door attempting to get the attention of Prozen on her and not where it should be.

In a way, Irvine was grateful that Prozen had taken over Dr. D's classes for the last few days because the old man was out. It gave them the perfect excuse they needed in order to get close enough to pull off probably one of the biggest risks that they have ever taken in their lives.

Moonbay started to go on and on about certain question that she was having trouble with and needed some help for them. Prozen may not like to give help accept for his favorite student Amy but Moonbay was persistent and would continue until he finally decided to help.

Moonbay had managed to get Prozen's back turned away from the door. That was the cue for Irvine to get started on his work. He carefully pulled something out of his bag and after making sure that no one was coming back to silently apply some glue to the edges of the door where it shut on.

He grinned when he finished still becoming completely unnoticed by Prozen. He knew Prozen would stay for hours in his office, which was just what they were expecting. It would be just long enough for their little friend to wake up and do its job. He took another box that was placed off to the side and kept it a good distance away from him while he placed it near the door but well hidden and opened the box up, nothing came out of it but Irvine knew the reason why.

Irvine gave the thumbs up to Moonbay when he finished and quickly ran away in fear of being spotted by Prozen. "Thanks for the help sir," said Moonbay putting on a fake smile although he didn't exactly help her.

"Whatever, just leave and don't bother me again," Prozen said turning back to his seat and sitting into it. He saw Moonbay leave the room and shut the door tightly before he once again got back to work on the stuff he was originally doing before Moonbay disturbed him.

Moonbay ran away from the class and met up with Irvine giving him a high-five before the two of them ran off back to their lunch bell so as not to be accused of anything before they got away with their prank. It was risky of doing this to a teacher but everyone in the school knew that he had it coming to him.

* * *

Prozen spent hours of working on papers in his office since he didn't have any other classes for the rest of the day. The disruption by Moonbay had sent him a little behind but he was intent on getting it done. He was growing tired and he knew that he needed to get something to eat but he planned on not leaving until he got all of his work finished.

A smell suddenly hung through the air and it didn't go by Prozen's nose. It was an extremely fowl stench. He suddenly heard the light tapping like little feet scurrying across the hard floor beneath him.

Prozen turned around when a small squeak was heard and his eyes widened at the sight that was before him. It was a skunk staring up at him with its beady eyes. He backed away slowly towards the door so that the skunk wouldn't get smellier.

He reached for the knob and turned it while pulling on the door but much to his surprise, the door was stuck. No matter how much he pulled on the door, it remained stuck into the frame almost as if it was glued in. He was trapped between a glued door and a stinky skunk.

The skunk suddenly turned around and lifted its tail towards Prozen and he did the first thing that came to mind as an extremely fowl stench covered the air, he screamed at the top of his lungs hoping that there was someone nearby that could help him.

* * *

Moonbay and Irvine sat in the back of their classroom bored out of their mind as they tried to listen to the English teacher talk about famous playwright and some of the stories that they created. They didn't feel like listening to the explanation about Oedipus Rex by Socrates. The guy killed his own father and married and had children with his own mother, which they both found very disturbing and also extremely sick.

What the two of them really felt like hearing finally came when a loud yell was released all through the halls. The sound was like music to their ears, as they both knew the source and the reason of the high-pitched yell.

The class upon hearing the yell immediately got up from their seats and crowded around the door after the teacher left the room to check out the source of the noise as well.

The two of them walked up to the door and pushed their way through in order to see or smell in their case the final product of their brilliant idea. And there he came down the hall with the janitorial staff following closely behind him meaning that they had to pry the door open in order to get him out of the skunk inhabited room.

To say the least, he looked absolutely furious. He glared at students that crossed his path and stopped to look at the two of them as if say that he knew that they were the ones that did that. Unfortunately he had no proof except for the fact that Moonbay had come to him for some extra help but he figured that wouldn't be able to work.

People all around him held their noses shut while he gave off the odor that the skunk had bestowed up him. Both students and teacher alike were doing the same thing with plugging up their noses and backing away from him so that they didn't end up getting the smell upon them.

When Prozen was all gone, Irvine and Moonbay turned towards each other and gave a secret high-five so that no one else would be able to see them and then know that it was their plan. The only person that they wanted to know was standing pretty much right next to them. They turned and gave a smirk that only Amy could see before they walked back to their seats.

Amy knew just like Prozen did that the two of them had to be the ones that were the cause of the incident with Prozen. She also knew that the attack was an indirect way of saying that there was some sort of war with her. She knew something like this would happen since winter break. 'You're on,' she thought glaring back at them. She was already forming a way to get back at them for what they did to Prozen.

* * *

Irvine and Moonbay still had on their grins all the way through to lunch that day knowing they got the best out of one of the worst teachers and got away from it without getting in the least bit of trouble.

Fiona was a bit scared of them considering they had the guts to pull something like that on a teacher. She didn't care that it was Prozen but a teacher was something that she knew they shouldn't pull that sort of prank on. Now Prozen was out of school for the day trying to find any sort of way to get that horrid smell off of him and his clothes.

"Now it is time to get down to business Moonbay. The only obstacle is out of the way so let us commence with going after our true target," Irvine snickered sneaking a peak in Amy's direction since she seemed completely oblivious to the plans that the two of them were making for her.

Little did the two of them know but Amy was also making plans since she knew that the prank on Prozen was an indirect attack on her. She also had a plan that she knew would pay them back for all that they had done to her. That had to wait till later though when she could work on it sometime after school. For now she was focused mainly on the two of them.

"What do you think Van? How should I get them back for what they did to Prozen since it was obvious that it was a statement towards me," said Amy holding her chin in thought. She didn't notice Van rolling his eyes at her or the rest of the table doing the exact same thing.

Van just sighed. "I could really care less what happens," Van decided to admit the truth and take the consequences that his girlfriend was going to dish out to him. He was thrilled that that had happened to Prozen for all of the times that he had given Van detention.

She was immediately in his face with a hold on his shirt. He didn't even seem the least bit taken back by her actions as if he knew exactly what was going to happen to him. "What the hell do you mean by you don't care? They did that only to show that they weren't afraid of going to extremes," Amy yelled at Van causing many people in the cafeteria turn their heads to look at her. She straightened up a little and let go of Van's shirt and sat back down in her seat.

"I think I speak for many when I say that I am a bit glad that that happened. He may be nice to you but he is not really all that nice to the rest of us," Van said taking a sip of his milk.

"So you are taking their side?" Amy yelled standing up this time and getting right into Van's face completely unfazed by the amount of people that were looking in their direction this time.

"I am not saying that. I am just saying to do what you want but leave me out of this because I don't feel like getting involved," Van said before he took a bite of the pizza that he had gotten for lunch.

"Traitor," Amy muttered under her breath but Van had heard it loud and clear and was smirking about it. "Oh well, I don't need your help anyways. I am sure that I will be able to handle everything by myself without the need for your help," she said taking a seat with a groan.

"I just suggest that you don't go overboard with all of this because it could very well end up getting you in trouble as well as them if you were to do something very serious and get caught. They may not have because there was no proof, it could be different later," Van suggested in a tone that didn't seem all that much like his normal one. In reality he was trying to protect his friends because he knew that Amy could go a bit overboard when pushed too far and this seemed like one of those times.

"What exactly can anyone do to me?" Amy asked looking towards Van with a bit of a skeptical look in her eyes. "I won't get into any trouble, but I thank you for worrying about me," she said with a smile that she only seemed to have for Van.

"I doubt that. I think that that might have been another motive for doing what they did to Prozen, get him out of the way so that he wouldn't be here to get in their way. That along with your thoughts of why it was that they did that," Van said trying to figure out what his friends actually had planned for his girlfriend. It was quite clear that they hated her, so he thought it would be amusing to see how this day was going to turn out.

"You shouldn't give them that much credit. It almost makes them sounds kind of smart which they aren't if they actually think that they could take me on," Amy bragged with a proud smirk on her face that made everyone at the table including Van groan out of frustration.

'She will never learn. Most of the time she is way too arrogant for her own good. She's stubborn though and I would put it past her to make things bad for them,' Van thought feeling back for his friends.

* * *

Fiona walked into her class shortly after lunch had let out. Neither Irvine or Moonbay was in this class, which Fiona didn't really like, but she did have Van in the class but unfortunately Amy as well but they were seated on opposite ends of the class so she didn't worry too much about her.

Shortly after Fiona took her seat in the class, Van came walking into the room with an emotionless mask on his face. Fiona could tell that he was very unhappy. That was how well she knew him, so nothing could really surprise her as to what he did most of the time.

For once she was surprised by his actions because since he had to pass by her desk in order to get to his own. When he passed by her desk, a note fell onto her desk without any sign from Van's demeanor that he was the one that did it. Fiona wouldn't have even have know if she hadn't seen him do it. Luckily nobody else seemed to have noticed at all.

Picking up the note carefully, Fiona opened it up to find a letter from Van and by the looks of it, Fiona could tell very easily that he was slightly nervous while he was writing this. Fiona guessed that it was because he thought Amy would be looking over his shoulder. The note said:

Hey Fiona,

I suggest that you be especially careful until the end of the day. Irvine and Moonbay's stunt against Prozen has really set Amy off and she vows to avenge him. You might want to warn Irvine and Moonbay because she knows that it was the two of them that did that.

I want you to do me a favor Fiona. I want you to stay out of whatever it is that Irvine and Moonbay try and do for the rest of the day or you will also get involved in Amy's revenge. Just to make sure cough once if you will stay out of it and twice if you won't.

Van.

Fiona looked slightly up and off to the side a little into Van's direction to see him staring in her general direction. Although she wasn't planning on getting involved in what Irvine and Moonbay were planning, she figured that she might as well just make Van a little more secure about it.

Fiona gave a short cough and she saw Van's smile before he turned his attention elsewhere in the classroom so as to show that he did not have any attention placed on Fiona. It was just in time too because a second later, Amy came walking into the classroom and she did not look the least bit happy.

"You aren't still planning anything are you?" Van asked once she took a seat next to him. A chill went through Van's spine when she turned to face him with a smile placed upon her face.

"I will let them have their fun today but tomorrow, every one of them will suffer from what I have in story," she said with a slight laugh that filled Van with such dread because it was almost an instinct that he knew that things were going to be far worse than he had originally thought.

* * *

"Alright, we have been complete idiots," Moonbay admitted while her and Irvine sat in their class being bored out of their mind by the teachers lectures. "We had everything planned out up to what we did to Prozen but we never got any ideas about what to do with Amy," Moonbay spoke silently so as to not be heard. Since her and Irvine had every class together, they were able to get more time to plan things out but they ended up forgetting that one important detail.

"How could we have skipped the most important detail of our plot?" Irvine wondered going through his head all of the hours that the two of them had spent thinking up the prank that they had used on Prozen and how to get away without too much suspicion turning to the two of them.

The two of them continued to just stare off into space not even bothering to listen to their teachers lecture when Irvine suddenly had an idea for what it is that they could do. "Hey Moonbay. I just got a brilliant idea. Come here," he said as Moonbay leaned closer and he whispered into her ear.

Moonbay had to bite the inside of her lip in order to keep from laughing out loud about his absurd plan. She had to admit that it was kind of cheesy but she also knew that that would make it even better when the two of them attempted to pull it off. "That would be good and humiliating for her to fall for that," Moonbay said chuckling softly so that the teacher didn't hear their conversation. To say the least, Moonbay thought that the plans for the prank were close to flawless but she knew they would have to attempt it in order to be able to find out.

"We have study hall next bell so I think that would be the best time for us to get everything set up. Just get the supplies and I will set everything up," Irvine ordered before turning back to the front of the room so that the teacher wouldn't see them talking if he looked up.

* * *

"You know, I really have to thank Fiona for some of this idea," Moonbay said while her and Irvine stood away from their little trap to watch the action unfold. She saw Irvine turn to her with a confused look on his face.

"What do you mean by that? Fiona hasn't given us any help in this. She doesn't want to even get involved for Van's sake," Irvine said wondering what part of it gave Moonbay that sort of idea. It was his idea after all with Moonbay changing a few things here and there to spice it all up.

"I almost forgot that you weren't here for Fiona's first day. You should have seen what she did to Amy. It was just priceless. Amy was badmouthing off to Fiona and the rest of us and Fiona actually dumped milk on the top of her head," Moonbay said while trying and yet failing to hold in the giggles that were threatening to come out at any moment. The memory was just too good for her not to laugh at.

Irvine covered his mouth with his hand to hold in his laughs as well. "Never got to hear any of that. Although I never really thought that Fiona had that sort of spirit within her back then. She almost always seemed so laid back. I can understand now with all that Amy has been putting her through," said Irvine getting his laughter under control and turning back to the trap only to see Amy coming down the halls with Van following a short distance behind. It was obvious that she was dragging him around because he did not seem all that happy to be there. "Here she comes," he giggled waiting for the finale.

Amy was walking towards her locker and stopped when she saw this monstrous contraption around it. "How lame can they get? Pranks don't work if the person having it pulled on them knows all about it. I try and open my locker and it pulls the string on the bottom dumping whatever is in the bucket at the top on top of me," she said examining the trap.

Irvine had to bite the bottom of his lip to keep from breaking out in laughter. She actually had the basic idea of it all down but she had one small little detail wrong which she was soon going to learn was a mistake for overlooking.

"Come on Van. I don't even need to go to my locker right now anyways. I will just call the janitors to remove all this junk from around it," she said with a smirk walking around it all to try and get to the other side. That was where her ultimate mistake was. She failed to notice that there was soap all over the floor right by the locker. As soon as her foot hit it, it slid out from under her causing her to fall down with her head hitting the rope. The next thing that she knew, she was covered in a few gallons of milk.

Amy laid there in shock for a few seconds trying to comprehend what it was that had just happened to her. She got up angrily when she heard a rage of laughter coming from around the corner and knew it was the cause of her problems for the moment.

When Irvine and Moonbay saw Amy get up off the floor and suddenly come charging at the two of them they quickly got up and made a break for it only to run into the solid chest of the one person they didn't want to run into right then, the principal.

The principal stared down at the two of them with a glare that sent most students who he gave it to cowering. It didn't quite have that effect on the duo. He looked up at the milk soaked Amy and then back to the two of them. "What do the two of you have to say for yourselves?" he asked still glaring.

Moonbay was at a loss for words. She didn't think that they would even be caught for their pranks. She had dealings with the principal before and she wasn't afraid of him. "Um... got milk?" she asked giving a cheesy smile.

* * *

"You know. I'd say that overall we got off easy for what we did to Prozen and Amy since we only got a weeks worth of detentions," Irvine said cracking a grin at the thought that the two would never look the same to anyone ever again.

"Only the two of you would be glad to get something like a detention," Fiona muttered from a few steps behind the two of them. Things hadn't gone her way because Amy was actually accusing her for the stunt that was played and also that tomorrow was Valentines day and for yet another year, she was all alone.

"Oh come on Fiona," said Moonbay dropping back and wrapping an arm around Fiona shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "I am sure that you can't honestly look us in the face and tell us that you didn't enjoy what happened to both Amy and Prozen. We would both know that you are lying," Moonbay said cracking a grin before letting go of Fiona and walking back to Irvine's side. "Besides. You need to cheer up. Tomorrow is Valentines Day. Maybe there will be something for you and Van," she said with a grin just trying to tease Fiona.

"No!" yelled Fiona suddenly breaking off into a sprint and running full speed away from the two of them. It didn't take long for the two of them to follow in pursuit of her. It was unlucky for them that Fiona also happened to be one of the fastest women in the school.

It took a while but Irvine and Moonbay managed to catch up with her. She ended up running all the way to the park and she looked like she was about to start crying. "What's up Fiona? Why did you suddenly run away when I just said a simple statement? I didn't think that you would take it so seriously," Moonbay said trying to catch her breath.

Something seemed to click inside of Irvine's mind and he wasn't able to stop himself when the next sentence escaped from his mouth. "Did something happen Fiona?" he asked in a quiet voice but she managed to hear it just fine. He was shocked when he saw Fiona nod her head to his question.

"Oh my god," Moonbay said shocked by Irvine's question as well as the response to it. She only meant it as a simple statement to tease Fiona. She didn't actually think that something had happened between the two of them. She walked forward to Fiona and kneeled down before her. "What happened Fiona?" she asked softly looking deep into Fiona's crimson eyes to make sure that she wasn't lying.

"During the trip that I took with Van and his family. The two of us made a serious mistake and we kissed each other," Fiona spoke so quietly that it was almost impossible for them to hear her but they managed to.

It was obvious that Fiona wanted to forget about it because she knew that she was only setting herself up for heartbreak if she didn't. Van was with Amy and would remain that way for a while because her lousy father bound him to her through blackmail. Moonbay knew that Fiona loved Van deeply but she didn't realize that things had managed to go so far.

"I realize that you would have liked it under different circumstances and I know why it is that you reacted the way that you did when I brought that up. I am sorry about that," Moonbay said staring towards the ground feeling bad for Fiona.

"Don't be Moonbay. You didn't know about it so it can't be your fault. I just wished to forget about it unless Van and I could be together without all the secrecy," Fiona said calming down a little since she felt like crying before. Thankfully, by telling the two of them her secret, it seemed to lift a huge burden off of her chest. Yet, at the same time, the burden was still very present.

* * *

"What the hell do you mean you still won't help me?" yelled Amy at the top of her lungs when Van had once again declined her offer to get revenge upon Irvine and Moonbay for what they had did. "They have humiliated me in front of the entire school and yet you still decide to remain neutral?" she continued to yell.

"Think about it the way that I do. As long as I remain neutral then they can't set their sights on me," Van said trying to put a little logic in his girlfriends head. 'I am pretty sure that Irvine and Moonbay won't do anything to me anyways. I am still not going to get involved in this war of theirs,' Van thought rolling his eyes which wasn't noticed by his girlfriend.

"Remaining neutral won't help in the least if you even associate with someone in this dispute," Amy said with her temper continuously flaring. 'Believe me on that,' she thought although she decided not to share with Van since it was obvious that he was not planning on joining in anytime soon.

"Fine! Whatever! Do what you want! It is obvious that you don't care what happens to me in any of this," she said. She figured that maybe a guilt trip would be enough to convince Van to join her side.

"Ok," he said and held back the smile when he saw her jaw nearly drop to the floor. "It doesn't mean that I don't care though. Like I said, I will not get involved so please just drop the subject," Van begged not even looking at her as the two of them walked down the road.

The two of them came across the park with Amy pulling Van by his hand and just by chance, Van managed to catch sight of a certain blonde and she didn't really look all that happy. It looked like she had been crying actually. Unfortunately, Amy had seen her as well.

"Look at that pathetic human, if she can even be called one. She looks pathetic with her eyes all red like she had been crying," Amy said laughing at Fiona's misfortune. Amy didn't even seem to realize that she was really making Van angry because of her insult to his secret friend even if she didn't know it.

Van free hand clenched into a fist at his side as she mocked his best friend, and as much as he was still reluctant to admit it, the woman that he truly loved. He managed to keep his anger under control but it still did piss him off a rather great deal to hear her talk about Fiona so lowly.

Amy started to pull Van away and Van took a quick look in Fiona's direction in time to see her look up at the leaving couple with pain filled eyes. For some reason, in the pits of his heart, he seemed to know that it was really him that was the cause of the pain that he was seeing. He never wanted to see that look on her face, ever.

Van closed his eyes to block out the sight of her pained face so that eh wouldn't act upon his desire to comfort her and just allowed himself to be dragged away by his girlfriend.

* * *

Fiona silently walked into her room later in the day feeling a little bit better after her talk with Irvine and Moonbay. The pain was still there but now she felt as if she would be able to bear it for just a little bit longer if she needed to.

Fiona nearly jumped in surprise when she realized that there was already someone in her room, Van. Her mother hadn't even told her that he was even in the house when she walked in the door, which she found a little curious. "Hey Van. What are you doing here?" she asked taking a seat on the bed that Van had been sitting on when she walked into the room.

"What? Is it wrong for me to come by your house anymore?" he asked with a small chuckle but it almost faded when he remembered the look he had seen on Fiona's face earlier in the day. "Is something wrong Fiona? I saw you in the park and you didn't look all that happy. Did something happen to you?" Van asked placing a comforting hand on Fiona's shoulder.

'Yes, you made me fall for you,' she thought sadly. "No, I am just not having all that good of a day. It is just that the thought of once again being alone on Valentines Day has made me a little depressed. Nothing to worry about," said Fiona with a smile although it did falter slightly when she spoke of being alone.

Van wished desperately to be able to give her a reason to be happy on a day that was meant for couples. He wished for nothing more than to be able to give her all the love that he wished that he could give her even if it meant fully admitting that he loved her.

"Well, there is no need to be sad because I am here to make it all go away. At least for one night," said Van holding up a movie that he was aware was Fiona's favorite. It was something that he was used to doing. Showing up so that the two of them could just enjoy the night playing games or watching movies.

Fiona's face brightened up almost immediately at the thought of going through her favorite pastime with Van. It allowed the two of them to have at least a little bit of time together. It was especially great when their time together was very scarce because of his girlfriend. "That sounds great!" Fiona said happily putting on her best smile.

Van slowly walked over and sat down on the bed right next to Fiona and slowly wrapped an arm around her shoulder while the movie started. The two of them had no problem with this type of position for them because they felt too comfortable just being by one another. They had done this so many times before even when they were unaware of their true feelings for one another. Besides, it was only the two of them at the moment and that was all they really wanted.

Long after the movie had ended, Van found that he was still very awake. He looked at Fiona to see that she was already fast asleep with her head resting comfortably upon his shoulder. He couldn't help but allow a smile to cross his face. 'Fiona is a one of a kind woman. The type I had always dreamed of having,' Van thought finally admitting to himself what he had already known but refused to accept, that he was in love with Fiona. 'It is too bad that I can't give her the type of love that she needs though. I am stuck with Amy and at the rate this is going, I will be stuck with her forever,' Van thought sadly while softly stroking Fiona's cheeks.

Van was so caught up in staring at her that he almost didn't hear the light groan that came from Fiona's mouth. He quickly pulled his hand away from her face so that she wouldn't know what it was that he had been doing before she woke up.

Fiona's eyes slowly opened to see that now blank television. "Over already?" she asked disappointed that she missed the end of the movie. It was then that she felt what it was that she was laying on. She looked up very slightly to see Van's smiling face. She gave off a small smile before laying her head back upon his shoulder. "Just a little while longer," she mumbled closing her eyes and falling back into her wonderful dream world.

'I will give you all of the time that you can possibly want Fiona if it was only mine to give,' Van thought while stroking her hair again when he was sure that she had once again fallen back into the world of dreams. Sometimes he was really curious as to why it was that Amy hated Fiona with such a passion. The rest of the school population as well as some of Amy's own friends didn't seem to have the even the smallest problem with Fiona. Most even accepted her as a friend. Yet Amy held this grudge that Van knew would never go away.

Van continued to stare down into Fiona's closed eyes and he saw a smile cross her face. He was kind of curious as to what it was that she dreamed about. 'It couldn't be me,' he thought sadly he thought closing his eyes as well and falling Fiona into sleep. It was a comfort for him even before he knew of his feeling to be able to do this and he didn't care of what consequences he would have because of this though.

Fiona's dreams were those of what she had always wanted in the world. Many considered her selfless but there were times that she wanted to be selfish. This dream was one of those dreams. She found herself standing in the middle of a place with all of her friends and family standing all around. Van was right in the center of it all and he approached her with a smile before leaning down and capturing her lips in a sweet kiss.

That was always what she had wanted, to be able to have Van out in the open and not have to have this sort of secret friendship with the ones that she was growing to love even more with each day that passed. She had to continuously remind herself however that this was only a dream and that she shouldn't get lost in something that wasn't reality. In reality Van was with Amy and he would remain that way. No matter how selfish the woman was, Van cared for her too much and wouldn't leave her.

Fiona slowly opened her eyes back to reality with a small smile and also a frown that she couldn't help but make when she thought of her situation. She noticed immediately that Van was still there sleeping by her side with his arm around her waist and she decided for once that she would be selfish and just allow herself to remain that way for the rest of the night.

* * *

Amy had stayed up late into the night without a second thought working on the plan that she was going to use to get back at them for the humiliation that they had dealt her earlier in the day. She planned to show them just how much they had done it by showing them a taste of their own medicine.

She grinned as she typed fast upon the computer that was located within her room. An evil chuckle escaped her mouth when she finished and looked over the product meant for her revenge. 'Yes, they will definitely pay,' she thought as he lips curved upwards into a smirk.

* * *

Van walked into the school the next day feeling kind of happy yet at the same time a little bit depressed. The time he spent with Fiona the previous night had been the best time he had had in a long time. Even if it had only been to just sit back, watch a movie, and just remain close to her. Now he was back to what he was starting to consider hell. He knew what it was that he wanted but he knew it was unattainable.

'I am in some really serious shit,' he thought since the image of Amy popped up into his head. If she ever found out the truth about Van and his feelings for Fiona, her worst rival, she would be devastated. He had no wish for that to happen no matter how much she tends to nag at times.

Van came to a stop in front of one of the soda machine and put in a dollar before he pressed the button for his favorite drink. It popped out a few seconds later and he picked it up and walked down the hall towards his locker with only taking a few sips of the drink every once in a while.

It was either he was being a bit paranoid, or a lot of the students were staring at him with a kind of a malicious stare like they were angry at him for something. He had no idea what it was all about because he didn't remember doing anything at all to piss anyone off for the past few days. That is if you didn't count making Amy angry by not joining her in the prank war.

They continued to stare at him while he walked down the halls towards his locker and he was really starting to feel a little bit uneasy. He also noticed that there appeared to be a rather large amount of trash littering the ground and the garbage cans and they appeared to be of the exact same thing but he was unable to see what it was.

Van took a sip of his soda as he bent down to pick up some of the many papers that littered the floor. Turned it around so that the front was facing him and he immediately spit out all of the soda that he had yet to swallow when he saw what it was that was on all of the papers that were all over the floor. He now understood immediately why it was that people were glaring at him; it was because of the saying, guilty by association. 'She's has gone way to far!' Van thought running around trying to find his girlfriend.

* * *

Fiona walked into the school with a bright smile on her face. Just the thought of last night seemed to give her a strange type of hope that she could not explain. They had done stuff like that multiple times before then. She wasn't quite sure as to why it was that now should have been any different.

The smile almost dropped from her face when she noticed that people were staring at her with sympathetic looks that made it look like someone had died. They were making her feeling uncomfortable like something bad had happened. For some reason, a part of her told her that she did not want to find out what it was that was making people give her these sort of looks.

Fiona came to a stop when she saw that Irvine and Moonbay were running towards her. She waved towards them but they appeared in a hurry and also it looked like the two of them were very troubled about something. "Hey you two. Is something the matter? You don't look all that good," Fiona said looking over their troubled demeanor.

"Get out of here now Fiona!" Irvine ordered catching his breath. He didn't even bother to say hello to her and he was now barking orders at her. This was definitely peaking Fiona's curiosity as to what it was that was going on.

"What's going on?" Fiona asked now getting very worried because she knew that whatever it was that had even the two of them worried that much had to have had something to do with her and she did not want to learn what it was since the two of them were not ones to be easily troubled.

Irvine turned around a second and him and Moonbay seemed to be discussing something that they did not want Fiona to know anything about. She just decided to give them the privacy that they wanted and tried her best not to listen in on their conversation. She felt something hit her ankles and looked down to see a piece of paper. She picked it up to look at it and almost immediately froze in place.

"Well if it isn't the woman of the hour," came Amy's voice. Without even looking at her, one could tell that she had a smirk plastered on her face for what she had managed to do.

Irvine and Moonbay turned around at the moment they heard the voice and froze when they saw Fiona looking at one of the papers that Amy had been giving out earlier in the day. They had tried to get Fiona to leave so that she wouldn't have to see what it was that was printed upon the paper. "You sure have a lot of nerve to pull something like this!" Moonbay yelled out walking up threateningly towards and unfazed Amy.

Fiona eyes were glazed over and her body quivered at the sight that she witnessed upon the paper. It was a picture of her. The thing that was bad about it was that it was of her that was forged so that it made her look like she was some sort of slut or more precisely, a prostitute. Her body wasn't her own, where it was usually nicely filled in, the picture had it sagging and she wore more makeup that she would ever wear. It was clear that Amy had made it and was also clear that it was forged but that didn't stop the thought that someone hated her so much as to go through with such a horrible thing so as to make her life hell. At the top of the paper it had a heading saying, 'Would you want this for Valentines day?'

"Amy!" Van's voice yelled through the halls and she turned around with a smirk plastered on her face as she saw Van running towards her with on of the papers in his hands. "What the hell is this?" Van yelled shoving the paper into her face but froze when he saw that Fiona was also looking at it as well. His heart twisted in agony at the look that was on her face.

"Do you like it Van? I stayed up all night working on it," Amy stated proudly without an inch of remorse in her voice to show that she didn't had any bad feeling weighing on her conscience for what she had pulled.

Van was beyond furious. He didn't care what the consequences for his actions were later but he knew that even Amy couldn't get away with something like this. "No! I don't!" he yelled into her face surprising everyone in the halls. "No matter who it was that you did this to, you have no right to humiliate anyone in that sort of way!" Van yelled at the shocked Amy.

"Just whose side is it that you are on Van? Because it is very clear that you are obviously not on my side," Amy yelled back. She was not happy that her own boyfriend was against her on this. "Besides, they deserved it after what they did to me and Prozen," she continued to yell into Van's face.

"Even in terms of pranks this is stooping very low Amy! I am speaking on behalf of everyone that goes to this school. Take a look around you. Do you see anyone that is at all happy about what it is that you did?" Van asked pointing his hands around and Amy's eyes followed to see many people glaring at her with extreme anger within their eyes that made Amy shiver.

Amy just shrugged her shoulders and turned back around to see the shaking Fiona. What? Are you going to cry about this now?" she asked still with no remorse in her voice despite the yelling at she was just given.

Moonbay rolled up her sleeve and stepped forward to give Amy a piece of her mind or at least a piece of her fist. "You think that you were right in all of this?" Moonbay asked incredulously. "Fiona had nothing to do with what Irvine and I did. She actually chose to remain out of it!" Moonbay yelled taking more steps forward. She was surprised however when she couldn't even get the chance to get to her.

Before anyone could even figure out what had happened, Fiona swung around fast and did the last thing that any of them even suspected her to do. She punched Amy very hard in the side of the face and sent her flying into some lockers where she fell into unconsciousness. She then broke out into a run leaving the school all together and ran down the road with her face in her hands while she cried out her pain.

Van sighed before looking towards his girlfriend. 'Can't say I didn't warn her,' he thought before turning towards Irvine. "Can you take her to the nurses office? I have something I need to do," Van said before running down the halls the opposite direction that Fiona had gone.

Irvine didn't even have to ask to know that he was just going to a different door out of the school so that he could talk to Fiona without alerting anyone as to what it was that was going on between the two of them. Irvine knew that Van wanted to follow right after her but he still had to keep up appearances for his family.

* * *

Van ran out of the school as quickly as he could and looked around but he found no sign of Fiona anywhere in the area. He didn't have a clue as to which direction it was that she had fled in but he was determined to look and find her at any cost. She was hurting right now and it was just something that he could not stand to see. It hurt him more than any physical injury ever could.

"Did you see that?" Van heard someone saying to one of their friends. "Wasn't that Fiona? She looked like she was crying when she ran out of here in the direction of the park. Not that I could blame her after what I saw Amy do to her," the person said completely unaware that Van was listening in on the conversation.

That was all that Van needed to hear before he launched himself in the direction that he had heard the person speaking of. He hoped to god that the person knew what they were talking about and that Fiona was actually there.

He ran all the way there but he found the park to be completely deserted at this time of day. "Damnit! She isn't here!" Van growled going over the entire park without a sign of Fiona even in it. He was about to turn around and continue his search when he saw Moonbay approaching him at a fast pace.

"Did you find her Van? I am not having too much luck," she said trying to catch her breath once she had managed to catch up with Van. She had done a lot of looking along the way but she didn't see Fiona anywhere.

Van was about to respond when his ears seemed to pick up a very slight sound. He also thought that it might have been more than that almost as if he knew that it was her. He saw that Moonbay was about to talk but he held up a finger to shush her and followed the sound of crying to its source.

When Van reached his destination he didn't see anything but he still heard the noise. He then looked up and gave a sad smile. 'No wonder I couldn't find her, she wasn't even on the ground,' Van thought staring up into a tree where he noticed the blonde hair of Fiona's.

Van was glad that he was an athletic person because that made it all the easier to be able to climb into the tree. The sight he saw made his heart plummet into the deepest regions of his chest. There sat Fiona with her knees up to her chest crying her eyes out. She hadn't seemed to notice him yet. He slowly moved towards her, which alerted her to his presence and made her look away. "Hey Fiona," he said sadly sitting on the closest branch that was to Fiona.

For some reason, she just couldn't seem to be able to face Van. She just felt embarrassed for crying like that in front of him and everyone else. She would never be sorry for what she did to Amy though. Amy had humiliated her and she deserved what it was that Fiona gave to her. "Why did that have to happen Van? I didn't even do anything and she did that," Fiona said trying her hardest to keep her voice under control.

Van carefully reached out and brushed aside some hair out of Fiona's face so that he could get a look at her beautiful face. Her eyes were puffy and red from all of the crying that she had been doing and there was also great sadness within them. "I honestly don't know what drove her to do something like that Fiona. She had no right to do that whatsoever," Van said quietly. "Come on Fiona. Lets get out of this tree before one of us falls out and gets hurt," Van said holding out a hand for her.

She looked at it sadly for a second before taking it and they both got out of the tree. They took a seat at the base of it. Fiona looked up to see that Moonbay was there as well but she left quickly saying that she was just going to leave the two of them alone for a while.

Fiona was shocked when all of a sudden Van grabbed a hold of her waist and pulled her upon his lap. She didn't even seem to struggle and just relaxed into his embrace enjoying what she could have even if just for a little while. Suddenly she just started to cry once again within his embrace.

Van was shocked when she started to cry because he had thought that she had managed to stop. He shouldn't have been all that surprised though, what Amy did was something that many would have a bit of trouble trying to get over. "There, there Fiona," Van said allowing her to sob into his chest. He softly stroked her hair in a soothing manner hoping to calm her down.

"I am so tired of this Van!" she said still crying. She finally looked him in the face and saw the confused look upon his face meaning that he didn't understand. "I always get seconds compared to Amy. She does something bad and you can't do nothing more than be mad at her," Fiona said as she buried her face within his chest.

"That is not completely true Fiona. There are many things that you have that Amy does have. It is those things that make her so jealous of you. That is what drove her to do what she did today," Van said continuing to stroke her hair. 'One of those things is my heart,' Van thought staring at her with a loving gaze.

"I don't care about all of those things Van. I could give those up and as long as you are by my side I would be happy. I have a very big problem with that Van," Fiona said making Van look at her with a questioning look. She swallowed what nervousness she had left. Even if it left her with heartache she had to get this off her chest. "I care for you too much Van. I want to be selfish and have you for myself!" she yelled before her lips were suddenly shushed by Van's in a sensual kiss.

It was something slow yet filled with more passion than any of them had ever felt. When Fiona felt Van's tongue against her lips asking for entrance she immediately opened up for him. His tongue probed her mouth and clashed passionately with her tongue. It was something they didn't want but they were forced to separate for much needed air. It seemed to short for the two of them and they wanted more.

Fiona was about to speak but Van put a finger over her lips to quiet her. "I don't want to consider this some sort of mistake Fiona. I don't want to consider the other one we had a mistake either. It may be wrong for me, someone who has a girlfriend, to say this but my feelings for her aren't as strong as the ones that I have for you. Fiona, I..." he said but Fiona placed a finger over his lips mimicking his way of quieting her.

"Don't say something like that right now. If it is what I think it is that you are going to say then please don't say it unless you can without regret. For now though, please let me enjoy what I have with you," Fiona said stealing a small kiss from Van.

The small kiss wasn't enough for Van as he pulled Fiona in as close as he could. In a way he was grateful that Fiona had said what she did because even if he told her that he loved her, he was stuck with Amy and could do nothing about it. Her concerns made him love her even more. With that thought he brought her in for another long and passionate kiss.

* * *

After what happened between her and Van earlier in the day, Fiona felt like she could go through anything life had to dish out to her. She went back to school with her head held high and people seemed to admire her for her courage in being able to come back after what happened.

Amy on the other hand was totally pissed with her I-don't-care attitude. She was even more pissed about the possible shiner that Fiona had given to her with that punch, If it hadn't been for makeup, many would have been able to easily notice it and that was something that she didn't want.

Fiona didn't even care what Amy had to say to her after that though. She had the greatest thing in the world, Van's loving feelings. 'He told me that he even cared about me more than he cared about Amy. I wonder if it is actually possible for him to love me in the way that I love him,' Fiona thought but she had something good for now with him and that was all that she would want.

Fiona was now walking home from school with a bright smile on her face thinking of all the things that could happen between her and Van from now on. cars flew by her as the people that owned them headed home for the day. Irvine and Moonbay were starting their weeks worth of detention now and she was stuck going home alone since Amy ended up dragging Van around for the rest of the day as well so that he could listen to her complaining.

Fiona slowly lifted a hand to her mouth as memories of the kiss continued to come back to her. It was the most wonderful thing that she had ever felt in her life and it made it even better that Van was the one that gave it to her. He was almost like a thief. He had stolen her very first kiss and most of all her had stolen her heart. She no longer cared about what would happen because she would spend what time that she could with Van and never regret any moments with him from now on.

Before she realized it, she was already far away from the school and in a rather deserted area even if it had a lot of cozy looking houses all around. The place was very beautiful and she could help but smile even more.

Fiona knew that if given the chance that she would gladly live the rest of her life with Van. That was only if he could get himself free from Amy's father's control. Somehow, Fiona had a strange feeling about the subject, almost as if something was seriously wrong with it all.

She didn't know why but she had this feeling that Amy had something to do with it as well. It was almost like she had absolutely nothing to worry about her actions with Van like she knew that she would never lose him. She was also very possessive of him and refused to let him do anything without her.

Fiona shrugged off the thought because she really had no proof about any of what she was thinking. She hated her but Van still cared about her. So Fiona wasn't going to start accusing her and end up making Van angry at her.

The sound of a car approaching Fiona caught her attention but she didn't pay too much attention to it because many cars came by. It sounded like it was going faster than it should have been though and it was coming closer and closer to Fiona. Fiona slowly turned around to see what the driver was doing but she didn't get the full way around before she felt herself get hit by an extreme pressure and everything went dark all around her.


	15. two hearts as one

Van days had gone from horrible, to really great, and then back to horrible in all but a few hours. His kiss with Fiona was enough to brighten his mood for a while but he hated when they had to return to the school and back to what many people had come to consider reality, that the two of them were nothing more than bitter enemies. 

Almost as soon as he snuck back into the school, so that nobody would realize that he had left to see Fiona, his girlfriend instantly bombarded him with her complaints over Fiona. Just by the looks of it, Fiona punch was more than likely going to end up leaving a nice shiner. She was pissed beyond hell at that and used almost every ounce of make-up that she had in order to hide the mark of her foolishness.

She kept to that for most of the day but strangely enough, by the end of the day her attitude had completely changed. It was as if she had completely forgotten what Fiona had done to her or there was something else on her mind that was causing her to be that unnaturally happy for her.

Van was more than glad when she had left to get home because he didn't think he could take much more for that day. His mind had been clouded with Fiona. The feel of her lips, her scent that intoxicated him whenever he got a good smell of it, and basically just her overall attitude. She was kind to almost every human being but nasty to her enemies when pushed too far.

He was in love with what was supposed to be the enemy, but strangely enough, he no longer cared. If Amy had not been holding him back, he would have probably yelled to the whole school that he had fallen in love with the blonde haired beauty. It gave him a reason to keep going in his life with the hope of a time in which he would be able to give her all of the things that he wished that he could give her.

When school ended that day he immediately ran out to his car after saying bye to Amy and finishing some work that he needed to complete, which took up a bit of his precious afternoon.

He had no idea what it was but something seemed to fill him with a dread that he could not quite place. It was as if a piece of his soul was crying out for something. It was pained and yet he did not know what from. He just tried to ignore it and managed for a while.

When he was only about half way home, he had to stop because he saw an ambulance coming quickly down a road off to the side of him. "Must have been an accident," he muttered to himself before turning his attention back to his original path back to his home.

It only took another minute or two to get home from there and he was more than happy to get out and walk through the doors. He wanted to just be able kick back and relax for the rest of the day since he was lucky to not have any sort of homework that day in school.

When Van walked into the house, the only person that he saw there was his mother since she didn't work. Van's father was at work, and Maria was back at her college. Van had always wondered how she managed to pay for it and yet now it all seemed kind of weird that he actually found out the truth. He had time to get used to it but he still was having trouble getting adjusted to actually being rich.

"I'm home," Van called out making his mother turn to him with a smile on her face that she usually held for her beloved family. "I am going to go take a nap. Call me when dinner gets ready," Van said before walking into his room for a nap that he felt he needed more than anything.

Van didn't know how long it had actually been but almost as soon as his head hit the pillow he was suddenly woken up by his mother. She was shaking him in a rather rough way to try and wake him up. Van took a quick look at his alarm clock to see that it was only about four thirty in the afternoon, which meant he only rested for about thirty minutes or so. "Dinner ready already?" Van asked sitting up in his bed but the look on his mothers face was enough to tell him that was not the case.

"Van this is very serious, Fiona was in an accident and is in the hospital now," his mother responded but she had barely gotten past the words Fiona and accident before Van was out of the bed and running out of his bedroom door. He heard everything but he didn't want to wait even a second more.

Van knew that he wasn't just being paranoid earlier in the day when he felt like something was wrong on the way home from school. He had seen the ambulance, he felt it within his heart and yet he didn't bother to even think that something could have possibly have happened to her.

Van didn't even bother to listen to what else his mother had to say when he ran out of the house and towards his car. He quickly hopped into the car and turned it on when his mother got into the car as well. "I am coming too," she said with a serious expression upon her face.

* * *

Irvine and Moonbay were extremely bored out of their minds they had detention for a while after school. It may have been over by now but that didn't mean that they had anything to do either. All they found themselves doing was just walking to nowhere in specific.

"What the hell is there to do?" Moonbay asked kicking a rock down the street out of shear boredom. She looked to Irvine for an answer but he was looking elsewhere. She looked in the exact direction that he was looking to see a very familiar blue car coming down the street at probably twice the speed limit. "Think he's in a hurry?" Moonbay asked with a small laugh.

The two of them jumped back very quickly when the car suddenly came to a stop right in front of them by only about a foot. Van's head popped out and he held a serious look upon his face. "Fiona is in the hospital. Get in now or I am leaving you behind," he warned but they only need to hear what happened to Fiona in order to get into the car very quickly.

"What happened to Fiona Van? Why the hell is she in the hospital?" Moonbay yelled into his ear only to have her face easily pushed back by his hand. She had never seen Van with the look that was currently on his face so she knew that things were very serious.

"Some idiot hit her with a car when she was walking home earlier. She is in the hospital now," Van said plowing right past a red light. By the time he had gotten into the car, he had pretty much broken ever single one of the traffic laws that were made for the area or maybe even for existence. No one was sure why no police were even trying to stop him.

"What kind of asshole would possibly do something like that to her? If I ever get my hand on them then I swear that I will wring every last ounce of life that they have left in them. Isn't that right Irvine?" Moonbay asked Irvine by elbowing him in the side. He seemed awfully quiet up until then.

"I think that Van would probably run him over with his driving before you can even get to him," Irvine said seeing Van swerving to avoid any obstacle that came into his path. To tell the truth he was very afraid to even be in the car at that moment and wanted nothing more than to just get out of it before they ended up in the hospital by being in a crash. He held onto the door with all of his might.

The three passengers in the car were more than relieved when they finally came to the hospital and Van came to a quick stop into the first place that he could find before shutting off the car and running straight into the hospital without giving anyone else any time to be able to get out of the car.

Van ran into the hospital and up to the receptionist at full speed nearly scaring the living daylights out of the poor woman. "I am looking for Fiona Alisi Lynette. She was admitted here earlier today," Van said quickly while also trying to catch his breath since he was breathing a bit hard.

The woman gave a shaky nod before turning towards her computer and typing in a few things before something popped up on the screen and a frowned crossed the woman's face. "I am sorry sir but she can't receive any visitors right now. You will have to wait if you wish to see her," the woman said trying to keep calm at the look of anger that was crossing Van's face.

Van was about ready to yell at her for telling him that he couldn't see Fiona right then. However, a large hand being placed on his shoulder made him look up to see his father standing there. Van was unsure how he could have gotten here so quickly since his business was on the other side of the city. "Calm down Van," he order seeing how mad his son was.

Van turned to look at the woman to see that she had stiffened up a bit at the sight of the now well-known businessman who happened to be standing right before her. "H-he's your son?" she asked pointing to Van since she knew that Dan Flyheight came here once in a while because of his wife's condition.

Dan Flyheight nodded his head. "Yes, he is. Listen I want you to do me a favor and allow Van in there. The woman and him are very close friends," Dan said knowing tha the hospital owed him a favor for helping them once.

"R-right away sir," she said shakily before pointing to a set of doors. Van thanked her before running full speed into the doors and to where Fiona was. He was determined to see her and how bad she actually was.

Van slowed down when he saw some doctors wheeling a bed down the hallway and immediately noticed that it was an unconscious Fiona that was on the bed. "Fiona!" Van said running up to her and the doctors. He didn't get to her immediately because a few doctors stopped him.

"Who are you young man and why are you back here?" the doctors asked but stopped when they saw another person approaching the small group. "M-Mr. Flyheight," the man stuttered upon seeing van's dad also walking up towards the group. It was then that they realized who it was that Van was. The resemblance was uncanny between the father and the son.

Through the next few statements that Dan made, Van started to realize just how much influential power it was that his father had. "Let my son be with her, she is his girlfriend, right Van?" Dan asked turning towards his son placing a warm smile upon his face.

Van merely nodded. To tell the truth, he had no idea what it was that him and Fiona had, but if it allowed him to be able to stay by her side then he would be more than happy to agree with anything. He looked at the doctor and saw him sigh before moving out of the way. "How bad is it doctor?" Van asked in a shaky voice before looking at the doctor.

"She will be ok in time. Right now though, she has a bit of a concussion, doesn't appear to be any broken bone except for a small fracture in her leg, and just mainly a lot of cuts and bruises on her body. She may be out for a while but I assure you that she will live," the doctor said making Van give a sigh of relief.

"That's good. You will be ok," Van said turning his attention to Fiona again and lightly taking her hand in his while they wheeled the small bed into a room. He pulled up and sat in a chair next to Fiona's bed determined to be there when she woke up. He needed to see her lovely crimson eyes, hear her beautiful voice in order to know for a fact that she was going to be ok.

* * *

Van just sat there after everyone had left to go home for the day. They didn't want to leave but they knew that they had other things that needed to be done. Van wouldn't leave though. He wanted to stay there for as long as he could. He knew that he would have to go to school but the next day would be Saturday so he knew he had some time to be with Fiona. He just hoped that Amy wouldn't come looking for him for a few days.

Van stared at Fiona face. The once and yet still beautiful face was covered in cuts and scrapes. It made it no less beautiful but the painful look of it made Van wish that he could go back to the time of the accident and just stop it from ever happening to Fiona. He desperately wanted to cream the person that did this to her. He was wondering how they could have possibly of hit her when she was in clear sight of everything on the street.

Fiona angelic face had a look of calmness despite what had happened and Van couldn't help but admire her for that. It didn't look like she was hurt and unconscious but rather just sleeping warm in her own bed.

"You look so beautiful Fiona no matter what happens to you," Van muttered taking her hand lightly within his. He brought it up to his mouth and placed a light kiss upon the back of her hand. I need you to wake up Fiona. Your family, your friends, and my family all want you to wake up and just show us that you will be alright," Van whispered in a cracked voice.

Van looked up when he heard something being placed on the table and saw his father placing a mug of coffee beside him. "I see that there isn't any change yet," his father said and he only received a small nod from Van. Dan just sighed knowing that he was probably not going to get too much from Van. Dan noticed that all that Van did was keep a hold of Fiona's hand, sit by her side, and give her loving looks. "You love her don't you?" Dan asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Van slowly looked at his father but he didn't answer the question. Instead, he asked one of his own. "Shouldn't you be getting home? I am sure you have work tomorrow," Van said earning a small chuckle from his father. The way Van talked made him sound like the parent rather than Dan.

"I am going to be taking the day off tomorrow. I am long overdue for one anyways," Dan said with a sigh leaning back in his chair to get more comfortable. He knew that Van was avoiding the subject. He wasn't sure about a lot of things with his son although many thought of Dan as smart. It was obvious that he was in love with Fiona yet he stayed with Amy. Dan wished to know why it was that Van did that to himself.

"I see," Van muttered turning his attention completely back to Fiona. That mere action left no doubt within Dan's mind that his son was in love with Fiona. He just couldn't keep focused enough on the outside world whenever he was around Fiona. It only made it worse that she was in the state that she was in.

"Van, you can stay if you want. I have arranged for you to with the rest of the hospital but I would really appreciate it if you would get some rest at some point or you may end up here for completely different reason," Dan said trying to lighten the mood a little bit.

A small smile graced Van's face for a split second before it once again disappeared into the all too serious face that he had on all day. Dan left the room shortly after that leaving the two alone. 'Please get better Fiona,' Van pleaded as he stared at her calm face.

* * *

"For the last time, NO! He is not here!" Van's mother yelled into the phone since his annoying girlfriend had been calling every five minutes asking if he was there. He was getting a serious headache and just wished that the woman would hang up the phone and never call again.

"Then where the hell is he so I can talk to him!" Amy yelled right back losing her temper. Although she sounded angry on the phone, there was almost some sort of happiness coming through it that made Van's mother want to throw up.

"He has gone away for the weekend to visit his sister," she lied because she knew of the grudge between Amy and Fiona and that was the reason that Van and Fiona's friendship remained a secret for so long. Her, like her husband, didn't know how Van could have possibly have put up with this woman for so long and also why he didn't just get together with Fiona. The two made such a cute couple even if they didn't realize it.

At that moment, he loving husband walked through the door and when he saw her frustrated and angry look on her face, it was almost as if he knew exactly what was going on with his wife. "Amy?" he asked in a slightly amused tone only earning himself a nod from his wife.

"Listen," Van mother said trying her best to control her anger with the person she had the least amount of patience with. "Van will be gone all weekend so please quit calling and wait for him to come back," she said before turning off the phone before the annoying girl decided to say more.

"That seemed to go well," Dan said looking the a pile of mail that was stacked on the counters of the kitchen that the two of them were currently standing in. seeing nothing of interest, he put them all down and turned to look at his wife.

"Van must have the patience of a saint to put up with that girl although all of us know that patience is something he has never had," she said taking a seat in a chair and laying her head down within her arms upon the counter. She gave a contented sigh when she felt Dan come up behind her and start to rub her shoulder in a massaging sort of way.

"I am curious as to why he even stays with her. The two of them seem like complete opposites. She just doesn't seem like the type of person that Van would normally like to go out with," he said increasing the pressure in her shoulders to try and make his massage better.

"Fiona said the exact same thing when I first met her and she didn't even know Van all that well then. I always imagined Van with someone like her," Van's mother complained in almost a whining type of voice, which Dan found very amusing to listen to.

"They may not outright say it but the way that the two look at each other and how they act around each other suggest that the two of them are in love. I asked Van about that earlier and he immediately changed the subject. It is like he doesn't want to admit it," Dan said discontinuing his ministration upon her shoulders. He took the closest seat to her and just stared at the woman he loved the most. "I guess there are just some people that have too hard of a time admitting it. I know I don't," he smirked when she smiled at him.

"You are such a sweetie," she said with a bright smile on her face. That just made him smile in a way that made it look exactly like one of the smirks that Van tends to wear upon his face. "Somehow I get the feeling that the two of them are perfectly aware of their feelings but just can't say it. Maybe they will come up with the courage soon," she said with a sigh before standing up and walking towards the exit to the kitchen. "I am going to go rest, tell me if you hear of any change with Fiona," she said before leaving the room.

* * *

Van eyes slowly opened. He took his fathers advice and got a small amount of sleep. He had stayed by her side for the past day by barely leaving the room unless it was completely necessary. It was now Saturday evening. The sun had set so the room was slightly dark except for a small light.

He looked over at Fiona and noticed that her condition had not changed at all in the time that he slept. She still lay motionless with the serene expression upon her face. It pained him too much now to see her like this. He needed to see her awake and hear her voice. "Please wake up Fiona," her pleaded.

Her form did not even stir a little at his pleading and that made him feel even worse. "I need you Fiona. It pains me so much to see you like this. I didn't realize until now how dependent I have become upon having you around to keep me sane. I realize that you didn't want me to say this Fiona but I can't help it any more. You told me to tell you it only if I am able to tell you without regret. I fear that I will regret it if I didn't tell you that I love you," he said without feeling the least bit of guilt for saying it. He didn't care about what was holding him back before.

Van gave a slight jump when he felt her hand suddenly give his hand a light squeeze and every one of his senses were even more focused upon her. He looked at her and noticed that her eyes were slowing opening and that made him happy to once again see her beautiful eyes. "You're awake," Van said happily giving her hand a slightly harder squeeze.

"You shouldn't say that to me Van," she said in a slightly raspy voice referring to his declaration of love. She turned her head to the side slightly to look at him with sad yet very happy eyes at the same time. She knew that it was something he shouldn't have said considering that he had a girlfriend but he had just told her the words that she had wished that he would at the same time.

"I know I should but I just can't keep it in anymore Fiona. Seeing you the way that you were scared me greatly. I needed to tell you and I won't take it back. I love you Fiona with everything that I am," he spoke with a passion in his voice. He brought her hand up to his mouth and placed a light kiss upon the back of it.

Fiona couldn't help but say the words she had been dying to tell him yet restraining herself from telling him at the same time. "I love you too Van," she said in a weak voice while staring at him with eyes filled with love and devotion. She didn't care of the consequences to saying what she was. She had to tell him just like he said he had to tell her.

To hear those words out her mouth meant more to Van than anything. He slowly bent down and placed a kiss upon her lips. He felt her respond immediately and placed more passion with it. He wasn't a fast kiss but a slow and love filled one. One to show her just how much he truly loved her.

When the two of them were forced to separate for a breath of much needed air, Fiona spoke. "What does that mean for us Van?" Fiona asked with her cheek flushed a light shade of red but with a bright smile on her face.

Van still kept a tight hold of her hand even though Fiona woke up and they had separated from the kiss. He tightened a hold of her hand before he replied to her. "I honestly don't know. I am still stuck with Amy because of her father but I don't want to be with her anymore. I want to be with you," he said smiling at her enjoying this one moment more than anything.

The two just remained silent for a while enjoying the presence of the other but a question came to Van's mind about something important. "Fiona? What happened when that car hit you? Do you remember anything about what happened?" Van asked in a serious voice.

Fiona's head dropped a bit as she did her best to remember that afternoon. "I am sorry but I don't know. All I know is that I was walking home and I heard a car coming. I didn't think much of it because I was off to the side but then I was suddenly hit from behind. I don't remember anything after that though," she said sadly since she couldn't be much help.

"It's ok Fiona," Van said placing a hand lightly upon her shoulder while she just lay there not bothering to look at him. "I hope that whoever did this to you suffers," Van said because he knew that there was absolutely no suspects as to who it was that hit Fiona.

"Van?" Fiona asked Van making him listen intently. "Can you please hold me?" she asked quietly before looking at him with her sad eyes. She saw him merely nod before carefully crawling into the bed next to her and wrapping his arms around her. "Thank you," she muttered closing her eyes for more sleep.

Van didn't get any rest. He just laid there holding the blonde beauty within his arms while lightly brushing his fingers across her smooth skin. 'She deserves so much more than I can actually give her right now,' he thought looking at her peaceful sleeping face before lightly kissing her forehead causing a smile to cross her lips. 'When I can, I will give her all that she deserves and more,' he thought smiling too before carefully tightening his grip around Fiona.

* * *

Thomas walked down the halls of the hospital with a serious expression upon his face as he walked to see his beloved Fiona. His family had been out of town for a family reunion for a few days and had just returned today just in time to hear of Fiona's accident. He immediately rushed there right after he got home and here he was walking through the hospital to see her.

He figured that Fiona was probably hurt in a lot of way and he hoped to be there for her to help her recover from whatever she experienced within the accident. He felt that by maybe doing this for her she might start to like him a lot better and maybe consider him for a boyfriend since she had never really had one.

Many may have considered it kind of selfish of him to do something like that while she was hurt but he felt like he was in love with Fiona. He had been since he first met the blonde beauty. He felt that the date they went on before would be his chance but it didn't get very far since she suddenly ran out of it when Van and Amy showed up. She didn't seem upset about them actually being there. It was almost as if something else about it was bothering her.

Thomas came to a stop right in front of the door that belonged to Fiona. He was about to knock when he noticed that the door was slightly cracked open. He didn't know why but he took a quick peak in and what he saw shocked him more than anything in his life. There was Fiona sitting in the lap of some man and the two were kissing each other. Thomas didn't bother to see who the man was before he turned around and ran as fast as he could down the halls dropping the flowers in the process. He left with only his broken heart.

* * *

Van and Fiona separated from the kiss that they had been having for a good amount of time. They loved every second of what was happening between them even if it couldn't be official to everyone that they were in love.

Fiona felt like she could wait until the end of the world if there could possibly be a time for the two of them to be together without having to hide behind this veil of secrecy. She was happy for now to know that he at least loved her in the way that she loved him. "I love you Van," she said dreamily leaning her head against his shoulder. She wasn't exactly supposed to be out of the bed, or even in Van's lap for that matter but she felt far too comfortable there to give a care.

"I love you too and someday I want everyone to know that," Van said with a smile but his thoughts were the same as Fiona's he would be patient for that day to come because he knew he had no other choice as long as Amy's father continued to have his hold upon him.

The problem that Van was currently having was what he was going to do with Amy afterwards. She didn't deserve something like that to happen. He knew that one of them would be hurt in the end. If he got together with Fiona like he wanted to, then Amy would be hurt. Yet if he stayed with Amy then Fiona was bound to be hurt. He had no wish to see either of them that way. So he had absolutely no idea how he was going to go through with any of it.

"I am sorry to have to say this Fiona but I have to go home for a little bit," Van said in a very reluctant voice. He wanted to stay there with Fiona all day but there were a lot of things he had put off until then just to be with you.

"Do you have to Van?" Fiona asked sadly clutching onto his hand as if it was a life raft. "Can't you just stay here a little longer?" her voice was pleaded when she asked it but she only received a no from Van but it looked like he was really considering changing his mind.

Van slowly back up towards the door but he never once took his eyes off of the woman that stole his heart. He opened it and finally turned around but before he could walk out he noticed that there was something that was in front of the door, which he accidentally kicked on his way out. He reached down and picked out about a dozen white and red roses that were lying right outside the door. 'What's this doing here?' he thought to himself examining the flowers.

"What's wrong Van?" Fiona asked causing him to turn around showing the flowers that were in his hands. "Those are beautiful, what are they for?" she asked curiously.

Van thought for a second but he was unable to come up with any sort of answer to explain that he just found them. "Um... they are for you," he said putting on a slightly goofy smile and extending his arms to give it to Fiona.

Fiona carefully took them with a smile. "Thank you even if you did just grab them a second ago," she said with a small giggle making Van blush with embarrassment at being caught. "It was a nice, selfish maybe, but nice of you though," she said with a smile while smelling the flowers for their fragrant scent.

"I guess I better go now. I promise to come by a little later to check up on you," Van said kissing her forehead before he turned and walking out of the door leaving Fiona with only the beautiful flowers.

* * *

Monday morning came and Van was forced to leave Fiona's side for most of the day to go to school. He was happy that she was feeling much better though and his mother also offered to stay with Fiona to keep her company throughout the day. Now he only worried how he would manage to get through the day.

"Sorry I didn't get the time to go see her yesterday but I was busy," Irvine said in an upset way. Fiona was like his sister and yet he couldn't even be there for her when she needed it the most. He had no idea why he was apologizing to Van but it just seemed to come out.

"That is something that you need to talk to her about. So why are you telling me this?" Van asked slightly amused. His question only received a shoulder shrug from Irvine. "The doctors think that she could be out later in the week if she is feeling good but she will need to be on crutches for a while because of a small fracture in her leg," Van stated remembering what the doctors had to him and Fiona's mother the day before.

"That's too bad. At least she will be ok. You sure seemed to be spending a lot of time with Fiona while she was in the hospital," Irvine said stopping at his locker but he didn't really receive a response form Van. He turned to look at him to see if he was going to say anything but somebody suddenly bumped into him on the person's way by. "What the hell!" he yelled turning to look at the person.

Van watched as Thomas walked through the halls after bumping into Irvine a second before. He looked to be in a real stupor and unresponsive to anything that happened to him. "What's up with him today? Usually he would be looking for Fiona this early in the morning," Van said highly amused by the scene.

"I have no idea. He has been like that since sometime yesterday after he came back from his family reunion. I ran into him in the park and he was acting just like that. He wouldn't say anything about what was up," Irvine responded while watching Thomas walk down the halls. "So anyways, what is going on with you and Fiona?" Irvine asked but when he turned around, Van was already gone. "Hey!" he yelled.

"What's up with you?" Moonbay asked walking up to him almost stealthily making him jump slightly in surprise because he not noticed that she was approaching him. She looked at him questioningly while leaning against the lockers next to his own locker.

"I am just trying to ask Van a question and he obviously doesn't want to answer it," Irvine said calming down a little and turning towards Moonbay. "Makes me positive that something is happening between them," he said earning a confused stare from Moonbay. "I asked him what was going on between him and Fiona. He refused to answer the question both times," he said with a smirk.

"Is that so?" Moonbay said chuckling as she looked down the halls that Van and walked through only a minute before. "We will have to keep and eye on him. In the meantime, do you have any idea what is up with Thomas? I tried to talk to him and he refused to speak with me. He seemed in a really big daze," Moonbay said with a curious look on her face.

"No idea, he has been like that since yesterday," Irvine said shrugging his shoulders. Suddenly his face lit up in an expression that didn't mean any good. "Care to try and force it out of him?" he asked smirking.

"Sure sounds like fun," Moonbay said with the same expression on her face as Irvine only it seemed even more mischievous. The two of them turned in the direction that they knew Thomas went before heading in that direction.

* * *

After Van had ran off from Irvine, he walked through the halls with no destination in mind. He knew what Irvine asked but he didn't feel like answering it right then. He knew Irvine and Moonbay would find out eventually but he didn't feel like going through it at that moment.

"There you are Van!" a voice yelled making him jump into the air. He turned around to see his angry girlfriend. "Where the hell have you been all weekend? I have been calling and you never bothered to return any of them!" she yelled even though his parents had told her that he was at his sisters.

Van faintly remembered his parents telling him of the excuse that they made when she kept calling them. "I was... at my sisters," he said barely able to remember what his parents had told him but he was lucky that it came back to him when he thought hard enough. "I was at my sisters. Sorry but it was kind if short notice. So I didn't get to tell you about it," he said in a rather convincing way.

"Oh," she relied kind of stupidly. "You should have at least called and told me about it that way I wouldn't have had to keep calling your place. You made me mad by leaving me alone on Valentines Day," she said with a pout moving closer to Van seductively.

"Sorry," he repeated but she seized his lips in a kiss. It was strange; he almost felt nothing when she kissed him compared to how it felt when he kissed Fiona. He was finding it very hard to kiss her back because his mind and his heart were pleading for him to be with Fiona. He hated how she would be hurt eventually because of a decision that his heart made for him.

Amy broke away from it a while later and smirked at him. "You seem a bit out of it today," she stated noticing how it was that Van was kissing or rather his lack of kissing. She figured that he must have not been feeling all that well that day because he was always a lot better than that.

"No, I am just a little tired," Van said with a convincing yawn. It was kind of true because he hadn't slept much that weekend while looking after Fiona. He preferred to keep that little detail of his weekend a secret though.

"Wanna know what I heard?" Amy asked looking at Van while the two of them started to walk down the halls. She saw Van give her a questioning look as if asking what it was. "I heard that that bitch Fiona got hit by a car. What an idiot. I say she got what she deserved after humiliating me the way that she did," she said with a laugh not noticing the anger that was flashing in Van's eyes.

"I heard about that," Van said taking a few deep breaths so that he could calm himself down a little. He was finding it hard not to yell at her for laughing at Fiona's horrible predicament. "You were the one to humiliate her first though," Van stated the obvious making it sound as if he didn't care all that much.

"And she deserved that as well. She had no right to hit me for it," Amy said making Van roll his eyes in annoyance. "Now I got detention and she didn't get in any trouble with the teachers. That is why I am glad that car hit her. She deserved it," Amy said angrily but she started to laugh again.

Van was holding on by a thread. He couldn't believe that someone could be so mean as to be glad about some being seriously hurt. He didn't know if he could stand Amy talking so badly about Fiona for much longer. "Sorry, but I have to go," Van said keeping as calm as possible. He then sprinted full speed down the halls before Amy had any time to say anything about it. 'I have to get away before I do something that I may regret,' he told himself.

Van ran until he was all the way on the other side of the school, which was empty by that time because most people had already headed to the homerooms. "Damn it!" Van yelled slamming his fist hard against a locker leaving a large dent within it. He deeply regretted it a second later as pain throbbed through his hand. He shook his hand to relieve some of the pain but it only went away slowly. Luckily, he didn't break anything.

"I hate this!" Van yelled now leaning against the locker for support. "I have to continue listening to these sorts of things about Fiona and yet I am forced to say nothing about it but make it look like I agree with it!" Van growled out but low enough so nobody would be able to understand it if they were listening in. "I am so tired of this," he growled falling onto the floor with his head leaning back against the lockers.

* * *

Irvine and Moonbay sighed in defeat. They had tried their best but Thomas was not answering the questions that they were asking. They figured that whatever it was that had Thomas in such a state must have been huge. The just wished they knew what was so huge about it.

They had been trying it for at least three days now and he remained the same all throughout it. "It is useless. He seems almost traumatized by whatever it was that he saw. All that I can make out of what he continues to mumble is, 'No, no, anything but that.'" Irvine broke out into laughter despite the situation. "That guy has some serious issues," he chuckled while shaking his head.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Hey, I heard that Fiona was going to be getting out of the hospital today. I was planning on going to see her when she got home, care to join me?" Moonbay asked with a small smile happy that her friend was feeling great right then despite being hit by the car.

"I was planning to do that anyways. Van is helping her to get home and I was going to come by later when I got the chance. Going together would make things even easier. I think she was supposed to be released around four or five," Irvine said as the two of them left the school that Thursday afternoon.

"It was at four so we still have a little time before she gets home. Come on, let's get a bite to eat and then we will head over to her place," Moonbay said dragging Irvine down the street towards the best fast food restaurant that she could think of.

* * *

Van gave a loving look to Fiona who had her head leaning on his shoulder while her mother drove them towards their house. Van decided to go with her instead of taking his own car so that he could spend as much time with Fiona as possible since Fiona wanted to go with her mother.

The ride so far had been very peaceful. Fiona had taken a small nap almost as soon as she entered the car. Van didn't mind that she used his shoulder as a pillow. In fact, he welcomed it. He wondered what I future life with her would be liked compared to a future life with someone like Amy. The two of them were completely different people even if they did share a liking for the same man. His heart only longed for one of them though and that was the girl in his arms.

Van could see that Fiona's mother kept looking through the rearview mirror at the two of them with a smile on her face. She loved to see her daughter with Van because it was so obvious that they were in love with each other. Van made her daughter happy and that was all that was really important to her.

She may not have told them but she had almost walked in on them in one of their kissing sessions and that made everything she thought they would be become true. 'Please make her happy Van,' she thought with a small smile turning her sight fully back to the road ahead of her. The road was completely empty.

The car pulled up into the driveway of Fiona home and despite his wish to want to stay the way that they were, Van was forced to wake Fiona up. "Wake up Fiona," he said giving her a light shake. She almost instantly opened those beautiful crimson eyes that he loved so much. "We're here Fiona," he said while she yawned.

"Already?" she asked tiredly. "Just five more minutes," she muttered lying her head back upon Van's shoulder. She smiled as she took in the warmth that he gave off. She never wanted to give something like this up.

"As much as I would love to stay like this Fiona, we should really get inside," Van said in a very reluctant voice. He saw Fiona sigh before she slowly lifted her head off of his shoulder with a small frown at losing the warmth of it. Van picked up her crutched and handed them to her as she climbed out of the car with him following after her shortly.

Even though she had the crutches to help support her, Fiona was glad when Van wrapped his arm around her waist to help her. It was strange, at first she was so reluctant to not let anything grow to far with Van when she first found out she loved him. She attempted to distance herself a bit to keep herself from remaining in love. None of that seemed to manner in the least now. She couldn't stay away or deny what she was feeling for him and her heart soared to know that he felt the same way.

Van felt the same way as Fiona. He wasn't supposed to yet he couldn't deny himself of her. He was forbidden from loving her yet he would never let it go. This would only hurt someone though and he was afraid of what the outcome of that would be. "Hungry Fiona?" he turned to her with the loving smile that he knew that he would only be able to give to her. For now he would live his life for what he could give to Fiona and hope that one day he would be free to give her more than he could think of.

"Very much. Hospital food has got to be the worst thing that I have ever tasted," Fiona said causing the two of them to have a nice laugh while they walked through the doors and into the house heading straight for the kitchen.

The two of them walked into the kitchen and without warning Van grabbed Fiona around the waist and picked her up before putting her on the top of the counter. They were eye level now and both were smiling. "So what will we have? You name it, and I will make it," he said walking towards the cabinets. Fiona and her mother pretty much allowed Van to do a lot of things around their house like it was his also.

"I don't really care, you decide," Fiona replied causing Van to smile his smile. She saw him rummage through the cabinets looking for something and she turned to look around her house.

In the background they could faintly hear something Fiona's mother was saying. She was saying that she would be leaving for a while and they heard the door open and close. A moment after she left, Fiona felt a pair of warm arms wrap around her waist and smiled even more. She turned her head and claimed his lips with her own.

* * *

Irvine and Moonbay came to Fiona's house just as her mother was leaving. The two waved to her. "Hello Mrs. Lynette. Is Fiona home yet?" she asked with a smile as the older woman turned towards her.

"Yes she is. Her and Van are currently inside. You can go in right away if you wish," she said before getting into her car and driving out of the driveway and away from the house.

Irvine and Moonbay took the invitation and went right into the house. They didn't see Van and Fiona at first but they did hear a small noise coming from the kitchen so they decided to head that way. What they saw when they first stepped into it made the jaws nearly drop to the floor. There was Van and Fiona and it looked as if their lips were permanently sealed together.

"Wow, things were a lot further with them then I originally thought," Irvine muttered with a smirk almost immediately getting over the initial shock of seeing the two of them in such a passionate kiss.

Moonbay didn't get over it so quickly. She was happy for them but she had just gotten used to them being friends and not enemies. This was just another thing that she felt that she would have to get used to about the ever-growing relationship between Van and Fiona.

Moonbay had no idea what came over her the next second. A thought just came to her mind and she couldn't help but acting upon it. "What the!" she yelled at the top of her lungs causing Van and Fiona stop kissing really quickly with their faces beat red but they held onto their embrace with each other as if it were their lifeline.

"What the hell are you two doing in here?" Van asked knowing that him and Fiona didn't let them in. He was angry but also kind of amused by the situation. Irvine and Moonbay sure were because they were laughing their heads off. "We didn't let you in," he stated holding onto Fiona's waist tightly.

"You didn't but Fiona's mother did. Never knew the two of you had it in you. So when's the first child," he teased causing both Van and Fiona to turn an even darker shade of red if it was even possible. "I am just kidding. Don't take it so seriously," Irvine continued to chuckle out.

Van was really starting to grow even more tired with all of the teasing so he decided to turn the tables on them. "What about you and Moonbay? Is there love in the air?" Van asked with a smirk but much to his annoyance Irvine didn't seem the least bit fazed by it. Moonbay on the other hand was burning red.

"There is nothing going on between Moonbay and I. You two are a completely different situation though," he said noting how close the two of them were still holding each other despite his and Moonbay's arrival. "When did this happen anyways?" Irvine asked turning serious.

Van pressed his forehead to Fiona and smiled. He knew he would probably be telling them this anyways. "I guess you could say it started on our vacation kind of reluctantly but after the school incident on Valentines Day, it just seemed to go a lot further," he said softly enjoying Fiona's warmth.

"How sweet," Moonbay said kind of dreamily. "I always knew that the two of you had it in you and that it was bound to happen when I first learn how close the two of you actually were. You had better not hurt her Van," Moonbay whispered into Van's ear with a slight snicker.

Van was reminded suddenly of what Amy's father was doing to him. "You had better not hurt my daughter Van or it will be your mother that will be hurt,' Van cringed at the memory of the day that changed his life and was still effecting him until today. What Hiltz said and what Moonbay said were similar but he knew Moonbay would never pull something like that. He would never even dream of hurting Fiona anyways.

"I won't," he whispered with a soft smile at Fiona who smiled back. "I promise that someday I will make you the happiest woman alive," he promised taking a hold of Fiona's hand and giving it a light squeeze.

"Don't you ever forget that Van," Irvine said making a slight fist and punching it into his hand but only for a little humor almost as if he was trying to mock Amy's father. He knew that Van would never intentionally hurt Fiona.

"There is no possible way that I will ever forget it. You are a very special person Fiona and I don't intend to let that go," he whispered into her ear causing a small blush of modesty and a bright smile to cross her lips.

"Thank you Van," she said leaning her head upon his shoulder ignoring the snickering coming from her two friends and just enjoyed the moment with Van because she had no idea how much of it she would be able to have until Van was able to be a free man again.


	16. unforgettable night

Van laid on his back upon his bed staring up at the ceiling. So much was on his mind right then and he was trying to sort them all out. The main one on his mind was the situation he was in with Amy, and his new found feeling for his best friend.

He had no idea how things became so crazy. A few months ago, if he was told that he would end up falling in love with his best friend then he probably would have laughed at it. Up until recently, he never thought of Fiona as anything more than a best friend. He thought that they would always be that way. Yet now he was in love with her and she knew that.

'Amy,' thought Van sadly. As much as the woman tended to piss him off, he had no wish to hurt her. People would think that since the two of them have been going out for several years that he would fall in love with her. He may care for her deeply but he just didn't love her in the way that she wished that he would. She has told him that she loved him before but he could never actually say words that weren't truthful.

To tell the truth, he hadn't been all that happy lately. It had been nearly a month since he told Fiona of his feeling for her. Since then he hadn't been able to spend too much time with her. Amy had been taking his time so much. She barely allowed him out of her sight if she could help it.

Van looked to his right and looked at the peacefully sleeping Fiona. This was one of the few times that they were able to be together. He enjoyed those few days more than anything. Especially when he could just hold Fiona within his arms while she slept as peacefully as she was right then.

He was actually scared when it came to her. He was afraid that if he couldn't give her the attention that she deserved, that someone else might come along and take her away from him. He wanted to be by her side so desperately yet he was still unable to give her what she deserved to have. She was a once in a lifetime find and he would be damned if he allowed someone to take her away from him.

Van suddenly heard the phone ring and immediately made a grab for it before it ended up waking Fiona. It may be night but it was still early so he was wondering who was calling him and disturbing his time with Fiona. "Hello?" he said softly putting the phone up to his ear.

"Hey Van," came Irvine's voice and Van let off a sigh of relief. "Sorry to disturb you since I know you are spending time with Fiona but I was just calling to tell you that I finished that errand that you sent me to do a few days ago. It wasn't exactly easy either," Irvine said muttering the last part.

Van was actually glad that Irvine managed to do this. He was planning something for Fiona since they didn't exactly get to spend the most time with each other. He was sure that she would like it and that was why he planned to do this. "Ok, thanks Irvine. We'll talk about this later though," Van said before he turned off the phone.

Van looked at Fiona only to see that she was looking at him with a smile on her face. "Sorry if the call woke you up," Van said leaning down and giving Fiona a quick kiss on the lips. "How was your nap?" he asked smiling at her as she snuggled into his chest a little more.

"Good night," was all that Fiona said answering Van's question. It was obvious that she had enjoyed it very much. "What was Irvine calling about?" Fiona asked opening her eyes and looking at Van with some curiosity.

"It's nothing," Van lied. "He just did me a favor and was calling to tell me that he finished it," Van said wrapping his arms around her but was forced to let go when the phone rang again. Both of his parents were gone at that moment so he had to answer it. 'Probably Irvine again,' Van thought picking up the phone. "What?" Van asked rather agitated.

"That is some way to answer the phone," came a voice that made Van's blood freeze. It was Amy and he was sure that by his reaction, that Fiona knew this as well. "Hello? Van?" Amy asked when she wasn't receiving a reply from Van.

"Huh? Oh sorry, I must have dozed off for a second. You kind of woke me up," Van lied since he obviously wasn't going to tell her that he was with Fiona at that moment. He could just imagine all the chaos that would ensue if she found out that big fact.

"Sleep? At nine o'clock at night?" Amy asked confused. "You don't usually go to sleep until really late," Amy said sounding a little shocked over the phone. "Are you sick or something? Because if you are then I will come over and help you get better," she said and if Van heard right it almost sounded like a seductive tone.

"That's ok. There is no reason to do that. I am just tired because my dad has been working me a little hard lately," Van said which was true in a way but he just wanted this conversation to end so that he could get back to Fiona.

"Well then, if that is the case. Then I need you to come over to my place immediately. There is something very important that I need to talk to you about," Amy said quickly as if she was in a hurry.

Van had no idea what to do. If he gave her the wrong answer that she would definitely start to suspect something. "Sorry I can't I am expecting a call from Irvine sometime soon about something I asked him to do. It is very important that I get this call," Van said with a sigh. He was expecting Irvine to call but it already happened.

"Well I am sure that you can talk to him tomorrow. I have to talk to you tonight. I think that it is time," she started and Van was begging anyone that she was going to say to break up. "That maybe we should take our relationship farther," she said calmly.

Van groaned. He knew exactly what it is that she was talking about. She had been at it for a while now but every time she brought it up he always found some way to weasel out of it. Problem was, he couldn't think of anything at the moment. "Listen, I already told you last time that you brought this up. No, I am not going to do that," Van groaned. "Now I really have to go. So bye," he said before he quickly hung up the phone and pulled the plus on it so they wouldn't be disturbed again.

Fiona had this sad look in her eyes. "It must be hard," she said making Van look down at her with a questioning look upon his face. "To have to keep lying to her like that. Since you said you wanted to be with me," she said sadly burying her face within his chest.

Van let out a sigh. "Don't worry about it Fiona. She just won't take no for an answer about a question that she keeps asking me. I wasn't lying about you. I was just trying to get out of an unwanted situation," he said trying to make her feel better. He guessed he couldn't blame her for being sad though. She constantly had to watch as he devoted his time to Amy instead of to her.

"You won't always be able to lie to her just to get out of the situation. She will eventually start to suspect and start to know when it is you are lying. I know that you don't want to hurt her but she will be if she finds out," Fiona said with a neutral expression on her face.

"She will be hurt more and more the more time I spend with her. I realize that in the end that I only want to be with you. She will be hurt anyways but I can't do that right now. Not as long as I am trapped with no escape. Until then I will just have to stay with her," he said holding her tightly to him.

"Why don't you just ask your father for help? I know that you said you won't but he can really help you Van. He is a really capable man," Fiona said silently. She has had this conversation with him before and it has always ended the same way. Even she couldn't find out why he didn't get help from his father.

"I can't Fiona and there is a reason for that. Hiltz not only warned that if I broke his daughters heart that he will hurt my family but he also said that he will do that if I told any of my parents about it. There is just far too much at risk in doing so," Van said quietly staring up at the ceiling.

Fiona gave a light shake of her head. She should have known that something like that was going on. If it hadn't then Van probably would have gotten all of the help that he could get by then. She felt bad for him. This also made her realize that there was still a lot about this that she still didn't know about.

"I am sorry that I brought it up Van. Maybe I am just being a little selfish in wanting you for myself instead of just being with you whenever we get the time to be alone," Fiona said sadly but she felt better the instant that Van tightened his hold around her.

Van kissed her forehead and tightened his grip on her. "It's ok Fiona. I understand how you feel. I sometime get jealous when I see other guys asking you out. You are beautiful and as far as everyone knows, single. I wish that you didn't have to go through all that you have to but it can't be helped right now. Please be patient," he whispered into her ears.

"You have nothing to worry about Van. They may try asking me out but I always turn them down. I just can't think of going out with anyone else when I am in love with you," Fiona said closing her eyes and relaxing within Van's embrace.

"I know, I can still have my fears that someone better for you will come around and will take you away from me," Fiona said shaking a little because the mere thought scared him more than anything he has ever gone through.

"It is my choice on who I think is the best person for me. I know that you are the best one and the only one that I want to be with. I will wait till the end of time for us to be together. You can be sure of that. Until then, lets just enjoy the time that we do have together," Fiona said closing her eyes once again and falling into a peaceful sleep once again.

Van looked down at her with a loving expression upon his face. 'We will someday Fiona. Amy will be hurt but I just can't deny myself from being away from you,' Van thought before laying back and closing his eyes while falling to sleep with Fiona laying comfortably in his arms.

* * *

Fiona sat in her seat just not being able to concentrate on anything that the teacher was talking about in class. She wanted to just be home. Her day had been lousy. None of her friends seemed to have noticed this or one other important fact today. 

The bell rang after what felt like the longest day of school and Fiona picked up all of her stuff very slowly. She stood up and was started to walk to the door but was stopped when Dr. D called out her name attempting to stop her. She shook her head to clear it and walked to his desk. "Yes, what is it?" Fiona asked as politely as she could.

Dr. D placed some papers down upon the desk and looked at Fiona with a solemn look on his face. "Please sit down Fiona," he said pointing towards a seat in front of him. "Listen Fiona, I am sure that you have other things to do but I need to talk to you about something important. I have noticed from your assignments that you just don't seem to be able to do them as well as you used to. Is something going on that could be the cause of this?"

Fiona knew immediately that she just couldn't concentrate because of Van. All she could think of was being with him every second of the day and it was affecting her concentration. It was a bad addiction that she just wouldn't give up. "No sir, I have just been tired lately," she lied convincingly.

"Listen Fiona, I will be very honest with you. You are a very bright student. You could very well end up being the valedictorian for the class. Your grades have slipped slightly though. I know you are capable of a lot more than you are putting out this past month and I want to see that put back into action," Dr. D said staring at Fiona with the utmost confidence in her abilities.

"I am sorry Dr. D; I will make sure that I work harder from now on. I just couldn't concentrate," Fiona said with a small smile. "I must be going now," Fiona said and when she saw Dr. D nod his head, she walked out of the door.

Fiona knew that if she was able to be with Van more that she would probably be able to concentrate better but she had only a small amount of time with him, thus the reason that she just couldn't concentrate.

She was kind of upset that he didn't even remember that today was her birthday. The past few years he would call first thing in the morning to say happy birthday but he hasn't even talked a word to her all day. That was why she couldn't concentrate in any of her classes today.

Now that she thought about it, no one close to her has remembered that it was her birthday. Irvine didn't and they had been friends for years. Moonbay hadn't and they were great friends, even her mother didn't mention a thing about it to her. She hoped that Van would remember but he hasn't said a word.

'Snap out of it Fiona. I am sure that he just hasn't gotten a chance to talk to you because of Amy. Just calm down and don't jump to conclusions,' Fiona told herself as she walked out the front door and into the empty streets since all the rest of the students had already left.

"Fiona!" a voice yelled from behind her, which caused her to stop and turn around to see Thomas running towards her. She noticed that he had been acting strange ever since she got out of the hospital but she didn't know why.

"Oh, hello Thomas," She said halfheartedly when Thomas caught up to her. She continued to walk on and he followed right beside her without saying a word as if he was trying to contemplate something.

"Um… happy birthday Fiona," Thomas said although he could tell from her lack of reaction that she didn't seem too happy to hear it from him. He was upset by this but not as upset as he was when he saw her with that other man. He was hoping that maybe he could do something to change her mind about the other man and want him more.

Fiona looked towards the ground wishing that she could just hear those words from van's lips. "Thank you," was all that Fiona muttered as she continued to walk with her attention towards the ground.

Thomas saw the saddened look on Fiona's face and knew that it was because of that guy he'd seen her with. "What is wrong with you today Fiona? You seem so sad?" he said looking at her with inquisitive eyes. He was hoping that what he'd seen in the hospital was nothing but a dream.

"It is nothing Thomas. I am just not feeling too good," she said putting up a fake smile on her face that she was almost sure that Thomas would fall for. He was looking at her inquisitively and it made her feel a little uncomfortable.

"Um… Fiona, I was kind of wondering. Since it is your birthday and all, do you think maybe I can take you out tonight?" Thomas asked nervously scratching the back of his head. "Maybe it will make you feel a little better," he said with hope laced through his voice.

"I'm sorry Thomas but I can't," Fiona said hoping that she would be able to get a little bit of a conversation in with Van today but she wouldn't if she went out with Thomas. It also wouldn't feel right because of her feelings for Van. "Sorry but I have to go," Fiona said running off leaving Thomas all to himself.

Thomas heard chuckling from behind him and turned around to face Van straight in the eye. "What the hell do you think is so funny Flyheight?" Thomas yelled as Van walked by him to get to his car. "Just because you have a bitch for a girlfriend, doesn't mean you have to be mean to Fiona!" Thomas yelled not knowing what caused him to swear. There was something about Van that he didn't like, like some secret that Van was holding that was a threat to Thomas.

Van was only teasing with Thomas because he was angered that Thomas asked Fiona out tonight. "Not sure what you see in someone like that," Van said but mentally continued, 'Actually, I do but you will never know that,' he thought with a smirk.

Thomas just got frustrated before he stormed away from the smirking Van. When he was gone, Van let out a sigh of relief. He had heard the conversation between Thomas and Fiona and it made him nervous. 'That bastard almost ruined tonight,' Van thought angrily but with a sigh.

It wasn't that he had forgotten Fiona's birthday, he thought that it was impossible to forget something so important in Fiona's life. He loved this day most of all, it brought his Fiona into the world. He had plans for that night and Thomas's sudden date invitation worried him because he had seen how down Fiona was today and was worried that she would do it if only to try and feel better.

Van walked to his car and got in. He had a few things to do before he would be able to talk to Fiona but he hoped she would enjoy his birthday present to her. It took a lot to set it up as it was.

Van backed out of his parking space and headed in a direction that was the opposite of his house. His parents were aware of what he was up to and they had helped out in every way that they could. They definitely liked the idea of him and Fiona together and were trying to keep it going.

* * *

Fiona laid on her bed with the side of her head upon her pillow. It had been the worst birthday ever and yet no one, not even her mother or Van had yet to say happy birthday to her. She hoped that one of them would say it after school was out but they didn't say a word. 

Fiona closed her eyes with a sigh as she was hoping to get the day over with so that its lousiness wouldn't have to go on any longer. That didn't last long before there was a knock on her door that forced her to sit up. "Yes," Fiona said to her mother since she was the only one here.

The door opened and her mother walked into the room dressed up as if she was going out somewhere. "Fiona I am going out to meet someone, would you like to come along, you have been moping around all day," her mother said with a smile on her face.

Fiona just knew that there wouldn't be any way around it. Her mother obviously wanted her to come along and Fiona knew that she would have her way in the end eventually. 'Maybe I can figure out why she doesn't remember my birthday,' Fiona thought but nodded her head and her mother walked out of the room.

She stopped when she was out of the door and turned around. "Be sure to put on something warm. It is getting rather chilly out there," she said walking towards her own room to grab her coat.

Fiona did as she was told and put on some warm clothes before she walked out of her room and to the front door where her mother was already waiting for her with a smile on her face. "Let's go," Fiona said unenthusiastically.

Most of the drive there was made with complete silence between the two of them. Fiona shivered slightly when she did notice how cold it was getting. It was much colder than she remembered it being ever since she moved here.

The two of them drove for a good thirty minutes before they came to a building. Fiona didn't know anything about the place except that it had only recently been built and completed.

Her mother drove around to the back of the building and parked the car. She stepped out of the car and then turned around looking into it straight at Fiona. "Come on sweetie," she said and smiled when she heard Fiona groan before unbuckling her seatbelt and stepped out of the car.

The two of them walked through the chilly night towards the doors into the back of the building. Her mother was walking at a rather fast pace and Fiona was having a bit of trouble keeping up with her. They wound through different halls one after another.

Fiona saw her mother turn a corner and ran to catch up but by the time that she got there, her mother had completely disappeared from view. Fiona looked around wildly but she couldn't see her mother anywhere. "Mom!" Fiona yelled but she received no reply.

Van tried a few more times before she simply gave up the attempt and slumped against the wall. She had no idea where she was and she had lost track of where to go to get back to the exit. She wondered if her mother noticed that she wasn't there anymore.

Fiona slumped down upon the carpeted floor and moaned as her head hit the wall. She looked left and then looked right before she stood up quickly. There off to her side was a beautiful white rose just lying on the ground. She was surprised that she hadn't noticed it sooner.

Fiona looked around and walked towards it and picked it up immediately noticing that it didn't have any thorns in it. She picked it up and smelt it with a small smile as she took in its wonderful fragrance. She wondered why it was just laying around.

Fiona spotted another and walked towards it and picked it up and then she noticed another and another all leading her in more different directions. She came to what appeared to be the last one but before she could pick it up she was shocked to see what she did.

She was now in a very beautifully decorated room. It was lit dimly with several dozen candles all over the place and there was a table directly in the center of the room. Fiona immediately had suspicions that something was going on from the first flower but now they were confirmed.

Fiona was suddenly blinded when a warm pair of hands covered her eyes. Warm breath blew by her eyes making her shiver as a voice whispered into it, "happy birthday, guess who?" it said with a slight chuckle.

Fiona immediately knew it was Van and sprung around and wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. "I was beginning to wonder if you even remembered it was my birthday," Fiona said kissing him quickly before smiling that beautiful smile of hers.

"Now how could I possibly forget my favorite day of the year? I just thought I would do some extra special this year so I have been planning this out for the past few weeks with the others helping out here and there," Van said before kissing her deeply and passionately.

"Oh Van. You didn't need to do anything special for me. It would have been a great birthday if I could just have you by my side. It made me sad when no one important in my life at least said happy birthday to me and it made it worse that you didn't talk to me at all," she said with a small pout but he managed to silence her with another kiss.

Van broke the kiss before he grabbed her hand and led her towards a door that was on the opposite side of the room. He opened it and the two walked out to see an ice-skating rink. It was beautiful at that time of night.

Fiona was shocked when Van handed her a pair of ice-skates but smiled and grabbed them putting them on almost soon afterwards. They were a perfect fit and Van put on his own as well.

They walked out onto the ice and Fiona skated around a little. She was always good at ice-skating and loved it whenever she could manage to find the time to be able to do it. It was a natural feeling to do this. Fiona guessed her mother mentioned this to Van because she had never told him herself.

Fiona did a few small tricks before she skated over to Van who was just watching her with a smile on his face. "You are as good as I was told you were," Van said and Fiona couldn't help but give him her biggest smile.

Music started to filter through the small area and Fiona smiled as Van grabbed a light hold on her waist and lightly pulled her with him as he started moving. "Come on Fiona. Skate with me," he said and she immediately followed right after him but he didn't let go of her waist.

It was going from one of the worst birthdays ever to one of the best in only a short amount of time. The two of them had the best time ever while they were skating within each others arms. Fiona laughed her head off the first time Van fell because apparently he wasn't as good as she expected. She was able to teach him a bit and even he was able to teach her something new.

The two of them skated off the ice laughing and just playing around while they walked back into the room that they originally started from. The candles were already considerably smaller than before because of how much wax had been melted but they still gave off plenty of light in the room.

Fiona giggled and looked at Van with a bright smile on her face. "This has turned from the worst to the best birthday ever. Thank you Van, I can't believe that I actually believed that you forgot it," she said laughing.

"Don't worry about it; I was kind of giving off that feeling. There were a few times today that I really just wanted to get you alone and tell you that," he said wrapping his arms around her waist and lifted her chin before kissing her fully on the mouth. He still didn't know how something so wrong could feel so right at the same time.

Fiona moaned into the kiss and deepened it. Their tongues were clashing together in a fierce battle for dominance. She broke the kiss after a while for a serious need for air and laid her forehead upon Van's shoulder. "This has been a great night Van," Fiona said with a smile while trying to catch her breath from the kiss.

"Don't you dare think that it is over Fiona! We still have the night ahead of us and a lot more is to come," Van said with a grin as he reluctantly let go of Fiona and walked over to the table where a present was laying in the form of a large box.

Fiona knew it had to have just been put there because it wasn't there when she came into the room the first time. It must have been put there while the two of them were ice skating. "You didn't have to get me anything Van. You have already given me so much," Fiona said but smiled anyways.

"You are right, I didn't have to but I wanted to get you this," Van said as he held the present out for her. He looked at her with eager eyes as she just stared at the present for a few moments before she slowly reached out for it.

Fiona took the present from his hands and inspected it for a few seconds before she carefully peeled the wrapping off of it to find a plain white box underneath. She took off the top of the box and gasped with what was inside.

Inside the box was a beautiful dark blue dress. It was made out of the finest fabric that Fiona had ever seen. She took it out of the box and held it up to herself looking in a nearby mirror. "You really didn't need to get me this Van," Fiona muttered looking at herself in the mirror. "This dress is so beautiful but it must have cost a fortune," she said with wide eyes.

Van chuckled a little as he approached Fiona. "As much as I would love to take credit for this, this one wasn't my idea. It is a gift from both of my parents and your mother. So it was split between them," Van said wrapping his arms around Fiona's neck. "Why don't you go try it on Fiona," Van suggested with a wide smile on his face since he really wanted to see her with it on.

Fiona didn't really have a choice as van ushered her into a room that she could change in. Fiona just stood there looking at the beautiful dress in her hands. She didn't know that it was possible to have a more beautiful dress than this.

Fiona slowly got out of her clothes and put the dress on her. It was a perfect fit for her and hugged all the right curves to bring out all of her looks. She couldn't help but admire herself in the mirror with the dress on.

She slowly walked out of the room where Van sat patiently waiting for her. He looked up at her with a grin on his face when she came out. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened at the sight of the beauty before him. "You look absolutely gorgeous Fiona," Van said giving her a kiss.

"Th-thank you van," Fiona stuttered when she broke away from the kiss. She loved his complements but she always felt a little bit too modest about herself. She noticed Van reach into his pocket and pull out a small case. 'What the!' Fiona yelled mentally.

Van saw the face she made and chuckled. "Don't worry it isn't for what you might be thinking. Neither you nor I could possibly be ready for something like that right now. This is just my gift to you," Van said taking a small silver ring out of the box. "Just something beautiful for you to wear," he said slipping it onto her right hand.

"You're family spoils me Van," Fiona said with a chuckle as she looked at the ring on her finger. She swore right then that she would never take that ring off from that day forwards and she had every intention on keeping that promise.

"Good thing you're not a selfish person. You never take anything for yourself but give to everyone. We just wanted to give you these so that we can all show our love for you. Me most of all," he said kissing her cheek before he once again laid a kiss upon her sweet lips.

"Thank you Van. I promise that I will treasure these for the rest of my life," Fiona said wrapping her arms around his waits while burying her face into his shoulder. She had no idea what she had ever done to deserve the love of such a kind family. "I better go get changed," Fiona said trying to walk back to the room.

Van immediately grabbed her arm in a light hold and pulled her back to him. "Don't leave it on. There is one other place we are going tonight and I want you to wear that there," he said before he lightly kissed her neck.

Fiona moaned into his kiss. She tried biting her lips to stop it but it was just too much. She knew they had to stop though or else things might just get a little too out of control. "V-Van, maybe we should go," Fiona suggested. She felt van stop immediately and she expected him to look up with annoyed eyes but instead he just grinned at her.

"You're right Fiona. We had better get going before it gets late," Van said and then started to walk but stopped again and turned around digging in his pocket again. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot," he said placing a small key into her hands. "Keep a hold of that. You will need it for later," Van said and Fiona gave him a confused look but he just smirked and tugged on her hand leading them out of the building.

* * *

Fiona was shocked with where Van took her after the ice-skating ring. It happened to be one of the nicest restaurants in the whole city. She had no idea what he was thinking since it would easy to spot them together. The people here knew the Flyheight family well and more than likely knew of Van's relationship with Amy. They were bound to mention something to someone. 

"Um… Van? Are you sure that it is safe to be here together?" she asked rather nervously. Sure they would go to the movie with Irvine and Moonbay every once in a while but that place is dark so it is hard for anyone to see them there but this place was really bright.

Van looked at Fiona and chuckled. "Don't worry about it Fiona. I have already taken that into account and they are waiting for us," Van said as he talked to a waiter and then turned around when the waiter nodded to him. He saw the look on Fiona's face and felt like laughing again. "Come on," he said grabbing her hand and basically dragging her after the waiter as he led them in a direction away from the other restaurant occupants.

The two of them were led to what appeared to be a private room. The waiter only bowed before he walked away to go serve the rest of the guests. Van walked up to the door and smiled before he walked into the room.

Fiona looked hesitant at first but then slowly walked to the door and opened it to find to her surprise that it was her mother, Van's parents, Irvine, Moonbay, and of course Van himself that was waiting for her.

"Now Fiona. Id you think that all of us would miss out on your birthday as well. Fat chance of that happening," Moonbay said with a grin as she walked up and gave Fiona a big hug before going to sit down.

"We can't let van hog all the glory tonight. We are your friends as well. Just because you two are together now, doesn't mean that we won't step out of the way," Irvine said with a chuckle and a small wave towards Fiona.

Fiona couldn't help but let loose the chuckle that came to her throat. "Thank you, all of you," she said with her brightest smile. "This is definitely becoming one of my most favorite birthdays ever," she said as she walked over to the only open chair at the table which was seated right next to Van.

"Don't be afraid to get whatever you want Fiona. This place has everything from fancy foods to the type that is not so fancy," Dan said with a smile as he leaned back in his chair and looked at Fiona and his son with a proud look on his face.

"Maria would have come but she was too busy and couldn't find the time off to come down here. She told me to tell you that she wishes you a happy birthday anyways," Van's mother said with a smile.

"I understand," Fiona said picking up her menu and looking at it. She was surprised, Dan was right when he said that they had a wide selection. They had stuff like lobster, but then again they also had things like hamburgers and hot dogs. She found it so hard to choose.

That is just the way that the rest of the time there was. Everyone just enjoying talking with each other and laughing at the jokes that people would make. Fiona found it the most enjoyable time in her life and she rarely got to be together with this many friends and family at once.

Van and Fiona enjoyed the time they spent there more than anything else they did before then. They were now walking out to his car because Van said that he had something he wanted to show Fiona.

"My dad was complaining again Fiona," he said and looked at Fiona who was giving him an inquisitive look. "He says he is upset because I am in love with you but refuse to leave Amy. Sometimes I wish that I could just get his help. Unfortunately, I am unable to," Van said sadly but perked up when Fiona wrapped her arms around him.

"You do whatever you have to do Van. I am going to wait until that day and be happy with what I can get now. I may only be able to have to wait on the sideline for you but I am happy anyways," Fiona said leaning her head on Van's shoulder.

"Thanks Fiona. That ought to keep me going long enough to put an end to this game of Hiltz's. Now, there is something I wanted to show you. Do you still have the key that I asked you to hold onto?" Van asked and was happy when Fiona nodded and showed it to him. 'Good," he said getting into the car and Fiona did as well.

The two of them drove for about thirty or so minutes before Van pulled into a driveway. "My dad told me a few days ago that we are going to be moving. That key that you have is your way into the place. I just thought you would want to see it," Van said pulling the car to a stop and the two of them stepped out of the car.

"Wow!" Fiona said as she stared up into the large house in front of her. She never thought she would see Van in that sort of place. She knew that he would have had a lot of room to do whatever her felt like.

"I know, I said the same thing when my dad first showed it to me. I knew he had money but this is ridicules. Not that I am complaining because I will be living here. I want to bring it here so I can show you around before anyone else," Van said with a smirk as he grabbed her hand and ran to the front door.

The place wasn't overly large like most mansions but it was a lot larger than what most normal people have. It was at least three floors tall and Fiona had this strange feeling that Van's room was right at the very top of the place. He always did have a thing for heights.

"Dad said that the house we are already living in is becoming a little too small. It was cozy but I am sure that I will like this place just as much," Van said using Fiona's key to open the front door. "I definitely enjoy the space that it gives me," Van said walking into the spacious room.

Van led her up several flights of stairs up to the top floor and approached a room that Fiona could only assume was his. "This is where I will be staying. I definitely like it a lot better than my old room," van said opening the door and walking into the plain room.

It was probably three times the size of Van's old room which would be good considering how much stuff her had. His old room was really packed with all of his stuff that sometimes it got hard to move in it. There was a built in bathroom off to the side and a closest opposite of it.

Fiona walked over to the window on the opposite side of the room and opened the curtains to see the most spectacular view she had ever seen. "This place is amazing. I kind of envy your family for being able to have stuff like this," Fiona said as she stared out the window.

"It all comes at a price for me. What is the point of having all of this if I can't be with you to enjoy it," Van said walking up to her and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "Maybe someday I will be able to fully enjoy all of this with you," he said kissing the back of her neck.

Fiona didn't bother to answer him as she enjoyed his feather light kisses along her neck. She felt Van grab a hold of her waist and spin her around so that she was facing him. He grabbed a hold of her hands and brought her close to him.

"Would you care to dance Fiona?" Van asked and was happy when she said yes. He let go and walked towards a stereo that Fiona hadn't noticed before. He turned on a rather slow song and walked back towards her. He wrapped his arms around her and lightly swayed their bodies to the music.

Fiona's body had a mind of its own as it swayed so easily to the music while she rested her head upon Van's shoulder. "Many things can change over time Van," Fiona said referring to what Van and her were going through. "But my feelings for you will always remain the same," she said with a contented sigh.

"Listen Fiona, things have been really hectic lately and I know that you don't like some of the things I have to do for my family. Please believe me when I tell you that even if it happens, I wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt you," he said tightening his hold upon Fiona.

Fiona knew what he was talking about. Amy had been really clingy to him lately and seemed to be trying to kiss him every chance that she got. She didn't like it but she knew he had to keep up the act so that no one would get suspicious. "I understand Van and I knew you wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt me," she said closing her eyes while enjoying the sounds of the music as it started to come to a close.

* * *

Fiona sighed as Van's car pulled up close to her house. She enjoyed the night so much that she wished that it didn't have to end. All good things had to come to an end eventually. She just wished she could continue on with this unforgettable night. 

They parked a little ways away from her house and walked the rest of the way so no one would notice Van's car there. They walked in silence the rest of the way there but it was one of comfort rather than an uncomfortable silence.

Fiona turned into her driveway and her eyes widened when she saw someone there already. Before Van or the person noticed, Fiona pushed van rather roughly into some bushes so as to not be seen. She gave Van a nervous smile when he gave her a questioning look. She just pointed towards the door where someone's back was facing them.

"Hello?" Fiona asked as she slowly approached the door where the awaiting person was standing. She saw him turn around and slightly groaned when she saw that it was Thomas. "Um… hello Thomas. What are you doing here?" she asked slightly nervously which went unnoticed by Thomas.

"Hello Fiona. I was just coming to give you these," he said holding up about half a dozen red roses. Kind of small compared to the two dozen Van gave her but was still a kind gesture anyways. "I was also kind of wondering if maybe you might have reconsidered my invitation to go out. It is still relatively early in the night," he said since it was only about eight or nine.

Fiona sighed while wondering why it was that he wasn't giving it up. "I'm sorry Thomas but I told you earlier that I couldn't. It isn't going to change this time either," Fiona said turning her body slightly to keep Thomas's attention away from Van who was trying to sneak into the back of the house.

"Oh, ok," Thomas said a bit depressed while he just shoved his hands into his pockets and walked away from the house. He looked back hoping she would change her mind at the last second but she was already walking towards her door. He just sighed and left after that as a heartbroken man.

"He really doesn't know when to give up, does he?" Van asked looking out the window slightly at the retreating form of Thomas when Fiona walked in her home. "Someone would give up after being constantly rejected," Van muttered.

"Oh have a heart Van," Fiona said although she did find his words a little amusing. "Thank you for the wonderful night Van. I can only imagine what it would have been like if we could go around freely with each other," she said with a smile as she gave him a passionate kiss on the lips.

"The night isn't over yet Fiona. We still have a few hours left. Besides, your mom isn't here. She left a note saying that she would be gone the rest of the night and that she didn't want any funny business," he said chuckling as he remembered reading the note.

Fiona couldn't help but laugh as well. "That is my mother for you. Saying that she doesn't want any funny business, yet at the same time saying that she wants grandkids as soon as possible," Fiona said while laughing as Van started to laugh even more.

"Anyways, I have one more thing planned for the night. Probably going to be the best part of the night, at least for me," he said and when he saw that Fiona was curious, he pulled his hands from behind his back, since he was hiding them, to reveal two things.

Fiona looked at his hands and smiled. In his right hand he held a movie, and in his left hand there was a thing of ice cream. "Now I definitely like this idea," she said grabbing his hand and dragging him towards her room.

The two of them laid back and dug into the ice cream while the movie was running. It was peaceful yet romantic at the same time. Neither wanted to let go of the other since they were so comfortable in the position that they were in.

Van brought his spoon towards the ice cream but found that it was empty. "Huh?" he said confused until he saw Fiona with a rather large spoonful of ice cream in her hands. "Hey! You took the last of the ice cream!" he yelled and grew more irritated when he saw her smirk before eating the last of it in front of him

Van put the ice cream in her mouth and smiled at the small torment that she was giving van. She swallowed the ice cream and looked at Van with the most innocent face that she could muster. "What ice cream?" she asked but she couldn't hold back the laugh that she was trying to hold back.

Van growled at Fiona before he pounced at her and started to tickle her in all of her ticklish spots that he had found over the years. "Say your sorry Fiona. Say it," he said as he watched her laughing her head off at his tickle punishment.

"N… (Laughs)… never," Fiona managed to say but she just couldn't control the laughter that was coming from her throat. "I… (Laughs)… will never… (Laughs)… surrender," she said but she knew that she wouldn't be able to last much longer under Van's torture.

"Fine then, I guess you leave me with no other options," Van said in a voice of false pity. He had intentionally left one spot untouched because he knew it was Fiona's most ticklish spot. All he did was lightly stroke her hip with one of his fingers and she started to laugh even more if it was possible.

"Alright… (Laugh)… alright, I… (Laugh)… surrender… (Laugh)… I'm sorry," she said when she was having trouble breathing through her laughter. He let out a breath of relief when van finally stopped his torture and settled back down next to her. Fiona glared at him playfully before she smirked and pounced at him.

Van was already prepared for her attack and grabbed a hold of her in mid-pounce. He flipped them over so that her back was on the bed and she was staring up at him. "Nice try Fiona. You are going to have to be a lot faster than that to catch me off guard," Van said placing a light kiss on her lips.

Fiona scowled at him as she saw the smirk on his face when he pulled away from the kiss. She hated when he teased her like that. She somehow freed her hands and pulled him into a deep kiss. It was much more intense than any of the other the two of them had.

Van got into the kiss quickly after his initial surprise of Fiona's forwardness into the kiss. His hands didn't stay still and were lightly tracing over her curves and across the silky feel of the skin on her arms. His lips left hers and lightly kissed down her chin and to her neck.

"Van," Fiona moaned slightly. If someone had told her at the beginning of the year that this would be happening, she would have told them that they were nuts. She wanted Van so badly that it was seriously impairing her ability to think. It was starting to drive her nuts with desire.

Van had no intention on taking this any further than it had to go. He knew that Fiona wasn't ready for that. She would want it to be with someone that she could be with without all the secrets that they had to go through. Van knew that if they were to do it, it would have to be the perfect time in the perfect place. This wasn't the time or place. He lifted his head and stared at Fiona's eyes as she stared at him with part lips.

Fiona smiled when he got off of her and they both laid back down and started to watch the movie once again since it was all but forgotten a few moments ago. "Someday we will be together openly. I will wait for that day," she said closing her eyes since she was getting too tired to watch the movie.

Van looked down at Fiona and smiled when he saw her already trying to get to sleep. He tightened his hold around her and kissed the top of her head before he too closed his eyes and fell asleep in the arms of the one he loved.


	17. joys of moving

Fiona rolled over and slammed her hand down upon her annoying alarm clock the next Monday morning. Her weekend had been the happiest ever with the wonderful surprise that Van had given her for her birthday. Now she had to go and face the reality that she was forced to go through.

She looked at her right ring finger and smiled when she noticed the beautiful ring that Van had given her for her birthday. She swore when she put it on that she would never take it off for the rest of her life, no matter what would happen between her and Van. It was just too precious to her. It wasn't that it was a beautiful ring; it was that Van had given it to her that made her love it. It was a gift to show how much he truly loved her.

'I wonder if there will ever be a time that we will finally be able to be together out in public or if we have to be forced to be secretive about it for the rest of our lives,' Fiona thought as she buried her head in her pillow, not wanting to get up and go to school for the day.

"Fiona, it is time to get up," her mother said sternly walking into the room and pulling the pillow off of Fiona's head since Fiona had thrown it over her when her mother first walked into the room.

Fiona grabbed the pillow from her mother throwing it back over her head only to have it pulled off again a second later. She turned and laid on her back staring at the ceiling. "I don't want to go to school today," she mumbled while her mother just stood there waiting for her daughter to get up.

"I am well aware of that right now but you have to go to school or else you will start to fall behind everyone else. Besides, you will have Van and all of your other friends there. Isn't that enough to get you to go?" her mother asked softly sitting on the bed next to Fiona.

"Not really. I want to be with Van at school but he is forced to give his attention to someone else and completely ignore me in the process," Fiona whined burying her face into her mattress.

Her mother frowned since she had heard this complaint far too many times before. They only increased within the month since the change in their relationship. She loved Van dearly but she hated to see her only daughter so sad because he was with someone else. She just couldn't figure out why he was with someone else when he clearly loved her daughter. "Come on Fiona, you still need to get up. Try and look on the positive side of things and it will get you through the day," she said with a smile before she left the room.

Fiona groaned knowing that her mother was right. She stumbled out of her bed and headed to the bathroom to get a quick shower. When she was done, she had a quick breakfast before rushing out of the house.

When Fiona arrived at the school, it was still rather empty. She was early and she welcomed the silence that it brought. She walked through the halls and towards her locker. She passed by an empty classroom when a hand came out and pulled her inside. She was scared until she saw that it was Van. "Don't do that Van!" she said startled by what he did.

"I am sorry Fiona; I just really needed to see you right now. So I came early hoping to get you alone before everyone else got here," he said before bringing his lips crashing down upon hers.

She wasn't the least bit startled by this and brought herself even closer to Van, deepening the kiss in the process. She knew that this really wasn't the place but she just couldn't help herself. There was a piece of her heart lost everytime that he was gone and she just yearned for the next time she could be with him again.

Van broke the kiss when he realized that other students were already starting to come into the building. "I know we won't get to talk to each other, but just remember that I love you Fiona," he said giving her a quick kiss before he snuck out into the hall blending in with the rest of the students.

Fiona just sat there for a few minutes after that. She still had some time before the bell rang. 'Why must I love Van when I can't be with him? I just wish that I could stand in front of everyone and scream that I love him,' she thought before standing up and walking out of the room unnoticed by the rest of the students.

"Were you having fun in there Fiona?" a voice suddenly said from behind her making her jump and turn around to find Moonbay with a mischievous smirk plastered onto her face.

Fiona chuckled nervously looking around for some sort of escape. She couldn't find any unfortunately. "What are you talking about Moonbay?" she said with a smile that anyone who knew who could tell that it was fake.

"Oh please, I saw Van pull you into that empty classroom even if no one else saw it," she whispered so no one would hear and was glad when Fiona gave her a guilty looking face while scratching her head. Something caught Moonbay's eye then. "Whoa! Where did you get this?" Moonbay asked staring at the ring. "I don't remember it from Friday. Did he give it to you?" Moonbay asked referring to Van.

Fiona's head nodded with a bright smile on her face. "He did. It isn't its beauty or its price that I like about it, it is that it was from Van that makes me love it," she said and a slight blush on her cheeks.

"You definitely look happy about it. I must say though, he had to spend quite a bit of money for such a fine piece of jewelry as this. It definitely looks good on you though. But since I am your best friend in the whole world, do you think that I can have it?" Moonbay asked jokingly.

Fiona chuckled and shook her head no. "Sorry Moonbay. I do not even plan to ever take it off until the day that I die, no matter what happens," Fiona said with a bright smile at her friend's antics. Moonbay always did like expensive things, even if she couldn't get them herself.

Moonbay laughed at this. "I know you will. You might want to be careful. People might start to wonder where you got such a fine piece of jewelry from. They all know your family doesn't have that much money. I will be glad to take it then," she said wrapping her arm around Fiona's shoulders.

'Leave it to Moonbay to continue trying,' Fiona thought with a chuckle. "Thanks for the offer but I will put up with anything that anyone has to say about it," Fiona said as the two of them walked into the classroom and took a seat at their desks.

Van walked into the classroom a few minutes later, and after the bell rang, as usual. He looked to be in a relatively good mood after their rendezvous the empty classroom. He managed a side glance at Fiona for a second before Amy pulled him down into his seat complaining how he needs to get here on time more often. The teachers were used to it though so they didn't do anything.

* * *

Fiona, Moonbay, and Irvine all sat at their regular table at lunch later in the day. "So Fiona, prom is only two months away, have you picked out a dress for it yet?" Moonbay asked although she had a feeling that Fiona hadn't even thought about it up till now.

"No, not exactly. I am actually thinking of just not going to it," Fiona said which earned her a smack in the back of the head, courtesy of Moonbay. "What was that for?" Fiona asked rubbing the back of her sore head.

"Come on Fiona. You only get to do something like this once. Who cares if you can't go with your first choice of people? You should at least try and make the best out of it. I may not have a boyfriend but Irvine and I just decided to go together for the heck of it," Moonbay said with a smirk.

Fiona looked a little confused. "I thought Irvine was your boyfriend," she said softly which earned a blush from Moonbay. "I mean, the two of you are always together, so I thought that you were a couple," Fiona said innocently eating the last of her food.

"No we're not!" both Moonbay and Irvine yelled in unison, both of their faces beat red at the mention of such a thing. They looked at each other for a second before looking away even redder than before if it was even possible.

"Sure could have fooled me," Fiona said earning her a glare from the two sitting with her. "Fine, if it will make you happy then I will go. Doesn't mean that I have to like it," Fiona said grouchily while leaning on her hand. She had always dreamed of going to the prom, but with her boyfriend, ever since she was little. Now she had one but couldn't go with him. 'It just isn't fair.'

"Great!" Moonbay said happily. She would have dragged Fiona there if she said no anyways. She was not going to let her best friend miss out on the most important day of their high school careers, besides graduation.

Fiona just didn't want to go if she couldn't be with Van but she knew that Moonbay wouldn't stop until she had her way. 'Who is there to go with though? Van is the only one I want to go with,' she thought sadly laying her head into her arms. Thomas had already offered but she didn't really want to go with him.

"You know Fiona; I overheard a few people talking about it and who they wanted as prom king and queen. I was pleasantly surprised when I heard some of them actually mention you. You are more popular than Amy gives you credit for," Moonbay said hoping that it would cheer Fiona up a bit.

Fiona looked at Moonbay with doubtful eyes. "The day I get elected for something like that, it will freeze in hell," Fiona said giving Irvine and Moonbay a funny look that said that she thought of it as nothing but a joke. She considered it a statistical impossibility.

"Wow! Fiona said hell. That's a first," Moonbay said jokingly as she chuckled a bit. "By the way Irvine, want to go skiing in hell?" Moonbay asked turning to the equally amused Irvine. Both of them were trying to hold in their laughter.

"Sure thing, it sounds like a lot of fun," the two said standing up and walking away since the bell had just rung. Both were still laughing when they left earning them confused glances from the rest of the students in the cafeteria. They just ignored it and continued on.

Fiona just rolled her eyes as she picked up her stuff and walked out of the cafeteria. 'Even if I did, I most likely won't win, anything that has to do with popularity, Amy always ends up winning. Then again, she does seem to get on many peoples nerves ever since that stunt she pulled on Valentines day,' she thought but just shrugged her shoulders and walked on.

The subject of prom court came up with Moonbay because they were going to elect who would be on it at two or three weeks from then and people were really starting to think who they wanted on it. They needed some time to get everything together and get everyone's vote before they told who would be on it then. They always did it at least a month before prom.

Fiona doubted she would get nominated. She got along with everyone in the school but that did not mean that she was liked enough to get nominated for something like prom court. She would only vote for herself and her friends for fun but she knew one vote wouldn't allow her to win.

Almost everyone expected Van and Amy to win, being the most popular students in the school. Fiona knew Van was more than likely going to win but she did not want Amy to win. 'Anyone but her,' she thought with a groan.

Little did Fiona know, but Irvine and Moonbay were already trying to sway people to voting for her. They wanted to knock Amy of her high horse. The woman was cocky and looked like she had no worries about losing it. She figured that everyone would just vote for her no matter what. They hated that arrogant attitude.

Prom was held in the middle of May for their school and March was nearing its end. They only had a month and a half till it happened and they wanted something good to be given to Fiona since she had suffered all through high school because of Amy and her jealousy.

They had been planning this all year. Many actually seemed interested in what they had to say. Amy ended up mocking them for what she called a pointless crusade. That they made them try twice as hard.

* * *

"You know Van, you really don't have to do this," Fiona said with a laugh as she saw Van running all over her kitchen. He had just appeared a few moments before and insisted that he make her something to eat since her mother was gone for the night.

"But I insist Fiona. What is wrong with me trying to make you something to eat for dinner," Van said with a fake pout but smiled when he heard Fiona laugh. "Besides, I like doing special things for you because it makes you smile," Van said placing down what was in his arms and walked over to Fiona.

Fiona wrapped her arms around Van when he grabbed her and held her in a hug. "I am not saying that it isn't sweet. It is just that it is unnecessary, I am happy enough to just be with you. That alone can bring a smile to my face," Fiona said and sighed when she felt him kiss her forehead.

"You're right Fiona; I didn't have to make you dinner. I wanted to make it for you. Now no more arguments," he said with a smile as he let go of her and went back to where all the food was laid out and ready to be used.

Fiona just shook her head with a laugh and walked towards Van. "Well, either way you put it, it is still a sweet gesture," she said giving him a peck on the cheek before leaving the room to give him some space to work.

"So Van, when is it that your family is going to move into your new house, or should I say mansion. That place was huge. Not the biggest I have ever seen but it was still big compared to my tiny home," Fiona said with a laugh indicating the small room that she was standing in.

"I have been packing my things all week and we should be moving there in about a week or so. Then my parents are leaving for a week or so on business and I intend to make the best of it. In other words, a party," Van said with a laugh. It was Friday and he had been packing since Moonbay when he got home from school.

Word had already gotten around school about Van's sudden richness. Even if he didn't have a party, some people would end up finding a way to have one without even consulting Van about it. There were too many party animals at their school.

Fiona couldn't help but giggle as well. "That sounds like a lot of fun," she said walking back into the kitchen when she smelled the food he was cooking. "Smells nice, is it spaghetti?" Fiona asked trying to get closer to see.

"Yeah, I hope that you don't mind. It is kind of the only thing I know how to make that doesn't come straight from a box," Van said scratching the back of his head with a small chuckle.

"Sounds good to me. I like spaghetti a lot. I am sure that it will taste great," Fiona said wrapping her arms around him. She knew it made it hard for him to cook but she was only fooling around with him a bit. It wasn't like they really got that much time to be together. It was really starting to get on her nerves.

"Let's hope. I am definitely not the best for cooking," Van said just allowing Fiona to hold him because he found it to be the best feeling in the world. "You're welcome to come to the party if you want, it is for the whole senior class since I will definitely have enough space for it," Van said putting all his attention on the food.

"Won't Amy be mad if she sees me there? We are supposed to hate each other and being at your place would look kind of suspicious," Fiona said although for once she actually wanted to just let go and enjoy the party.

"Irvine said he would take the blame if that question came up but I am sure that no one will really care. They will be enjoying themselves too much to take notice of one person," Van said just shrugging his shoulders. "Here, taste this," he said holding up a bit of sauce.

Fiona took a smile amount of it into her mouth and then smiled. "This is pretty good," Fiona said pecking him on the cheek before finally letting go while Van put some of the final touches on the food.

Van was about to start serving the food up when his cell phone started to ring. He groaned when he looked at who it was because this was supposed to be his time with Fiona and he knew Amy would end up doing something to unintentionally ruin the evening her had planned. "Hello?" Van said calmly into the phone.

"Where are you Van? I have been looking for you all night. Never mind. Listen, I need you to come over to my place for dinner tonight. It has been a while since we have been able to do something like that," Amy said with a small outing tone to her voice that she thought Van couldn't deny.

Van just knew that something like that was going to happen. "I can't, I'm sorry. I have a lot of things that I need to get done for next week and I have already eaten," Van lied looking at Fiona who sat on the couch with a pout of her own. He knew she hated it when he talked to Amy when they were trying to spend time together but it was something that he couldn't control right then.

"Come on Van. We never spend any time together lately. I am only asking you over for a dinner with my family," Amy whined over the phone. She was determined to get Van over there that night.

"Huh? What do you mean by that? We are together almost every second of the day," Van said knowing it was just her trying to make him feel guilty but he had long since seen past those tricks of hers. He was going to spend time with Fiona and no one was going to stop that.

Amy groaned over the phone in annoyance. "Fine! Have it your way! You will come over tomorrow for dinner and you are not getting out of it!" she said angrily before hanging up the phone much to Van's relief.

Van turned off his phone so he wouldn't be disturbed for the rest of the night. "Sorry about that Fiona. I wish I had just turned off my phone so that I could just pretend that I forgot and not had to pick it up," Van said dishing out the food and bringing it over to Fiona.

"Yeah, I know. I just wish that we didn't have to do all of this in secret. Then we could spend more time with each other without it being interrupted like a second ago," Fiona said in a calm voice but then her face saddened. "I'm sorry, I was being selfish by saying that," she said with a meaningless laugh.

Van just shook his head. "I have told you this a thousand times Fiona, you are not selfish. You just want what I want as well. We will have that time together eventually. I will do what I can until then," Van said with a smile while rubbing Fiona's shoulders which she obviously appreciated by the moan she let out. "Now, why don't we start eating before the food gets cold?" Van asked with a smile and was glad when Fiona nodded her head.

* * *

Van grunted and groaned as him and Irvine grabbed a hold of a rather heavy piece of furniture out of his old house. "Moving is a pain!" Van yelled in annoyance before setting the furniture down to get a small rest. Even with both of the strength, it was rather hard to move the object.

Irvine just glared at Van. "Quit complaining Van, I am not the one that is moving, and yet I still get stuck doing all of the hard work," he said stretching his arm where a cramp was starting to form. "You have money, why not pay people to do this?" he asked taking a seat.

Van took a seat on a chair that was opposite of Irvine. "No idea, this was all my dad's idea. He said that it builds character," Van said leaning back in the chair with a sigh. They had been working for most of the day and were only half way done. 'We had more things than I thought,' Van thought with a groan.

"Hey you two, no slacking off," Van's father yelled as he exited the back of the truck carrying all of the possessions. "We still have a lot of work to do. So get up and get to work," he said even though he knew they were tired. He was too but he wanted to get this done with.

Van just looked at his father like he was crazy. "You aren't the one that is carrying all of this heavy stuff. Just give us a breather," Van said taking in deep breaths of air. His father just went inside much to Van's relief.

After a minute or two of rest, Van and Irvine got back to work. They were all too happy when they were able to get the heavy desk that they were carrying into the truck. It was probably the heaviest thing in the house.

Irvine dusted off his hands and then stretched them as the two of them headed back into the house. "So, how much is there left for us to carry?" Irvine asked with a little reluctance. He was still trying to figure out how he had gotten dragged into this in the first place. 'Oh yeah, Van's father offered me money to do the work,' he thought with a groan.

"Most of the heavy stuff is finally out of the house. Now all we have is the thousands of boxes that are scattered all over the place. I get the feeling that this will be much harder," Van said with a yawn. He had to wake up early to get started.

'That's just great, I better get paid a lot for this,' Irvine thought as he trudged over to the boxes. He picked on up and noticed that even the boxes were heavier than he expected them to be. "You guys have a lot of junk," he said leaving the house.

Van couldn't help but chuckle. "Yeah, I guess that we do," he said picking up a box of his own. He too realized quickly how heavy the boxes were and that he needed to adjust it before he dropped it onto himself. He walked towards the door but came to a stop when he heard the voices of his mother and Fiona in another room.

Fiona had volunteered to help and his mother and her were packing all the boxes while the men carried them out to the truck. Van was happy that she was so willing to help them. She always was willing to help others without any rewards for herself.

Van was brought out of his thoughts when he felt a tap on his shoulder which caused him to jump and nearly lose the box that he was holding. He turned around to see Amy standing there. "A-Amy, what are you doing here?" Van asked a little nervously hoping that she wouldn't hear his mother and Fiona's conversation.

Amy just raised an eyebrow to him. "What is so wrong about coming to see you? We have been barely able to speak all week because of the packing," Amy said as if it was the most obvious thing. "Why, are you hiding something?" she asked in a playful tone.

Van chuckled a little but didn't sound too suspicious. "Of course not, why would I be?" Van asked sounding almost convincing. Amy didn't seem to notice though. 'I need to find a way to get her to leave, but how?" Van asked himself as if in deep thought.

"I say that it is about time that you moved out of this small place. Nothing very fitting of someone like you," she said although she seemed to be trying to keep her distance right then.

Van just rolled his eyes. 'Fiona always liked it here,' he thought grouchily. He suddenly had an idea since he noticed what it was that Amy was doing. This brought a smirk to his face and made him look like he always used to look when in her presence. 'This ought to be fun,' he thought highly amused.

She was keeping her distance because he was all sweaty and she didn't want to get it on her clean clothes. It was pretty obvious that it was a new dress that she had on and that she didn't want it ruined.

"Oh come on, it isn't all that bad. I always found it rather cozy. How can you say differently," Van said approaching her while she took a step or two back. He raised his arm and was about to put it around her shoulders when she jumped out of his reach.

"I had something to say but maybe I should just leave and come back later when you are cleaner to tell you about it," she said turning around and walking towards the door. She stopped right at the door and thought out loud. "Why do all this manual work?" she muttered to herself but Van managed to hear.

"I do it because it is so much fun. You should give it a try sometime. You will find that it can be really refreshing," Van said contrary to all of his earlier complaining that he was doing when they were moving the desk.

Amy gave a disgusted look. "No thanks," she said giving him an odd look before walking out of the door just as Irvine came in. She shook her head figuring that she would never understand how Van's family thought.

Van watched out the door as she walked away before giving a triumphant pose. "Success!" he said with a victorious grin before picking the box back up and walking out towards the truck once again like he was doing before Amy appeared.

"Nice job Van. I couldn't stop her from coming in. Luckily you managed to get her to leave before she noticed that Fiona was here," Irvine said grabbing another box before leaving right behind Van. 'That would have proven to be an interesting sight if she did. I wonder how Van would have gotten out of that mess,' Irvine thought with a grin.

"Got her to what?" Fiona asked coming down the halls of the house, completely unaware of the events that had just happened in this place. "What's going on out here?" Fiona asked as Fiona and Irvine came walking back into the house.

"Nothing to worry about Fiona. Amy stopped by for a surprise visit. I managed to get her to leave quickly enough before she figured out that you were here," Van said while grabbing another box and taking it out to the truck. He gave Fiona a quick kiss on the cheek and she wasn't even disgusted despite the fact he was all sweaty.

Fiona giggled lightly and playful hit him on the arm. "You're all sweaty," she said but that didn't stop her from giving him a kiss on the cheek as well. "Oh yeah, you're mother told me to tell you that everything is packed and only needs to be loaded into the truck now," she said with a smile before walking away to join his mother again.

Van looked around and saw that there was only about twenty or so boxes left. "We really do have too much stuff," he said while shaking his head. "Oh well, better get to work," he said with a sigh.

* * *

Van slumped against the wall when they had finally managed to get the last of the boxes on the truck. It had been an exhausting day. They had worked from morning till night and everyone was exhausted.

"If you guys move again, don't call me," Irvine groaned as he fell to the floor and laid still as if he was dead. All of his muscles were sore and incapable of moving even the slightest amount. "What was in those boxes anyways, anvils?" he asked just staring at the top of the ceiling.

"How'd you guess?" Van asked sarcastically since he was in basically the exact same state as Irvine. "The joy comes tomorrow when we get to unload everything," Van said causing Irvine to panic.

"Don't even think about calling me for that!" Irvine said suddenly finding energy and jumping to his feet. "I'll see you all later unless it has to do with moving into your place," he said leaving the door.

"He forgot his pay," Van's father said making everyone in the room laugh. "We only had to do this today because I couldn't find anyone to help and it had to get done today. Tomorrow, actual movers will finish the job by taking it to our new place and unloading it. So don't fret about it," he said leaning against the wall as well since there was no place to sit.

"Thank god!" Van yelled happily holding Fiona's hand tightly since she was sitting right next to him. "So where are we going to sleep tonight, since all of our beds and stuff are packed and on the truck?" Van asked what was on everyone's mind.

"Fiona's mother offered to let us use their guest room for the night," Van's father said. He knew that it was small and that Van would probably sleep in Fiona's room anyways. They all trusted the two of them not to do anything inappropriate so they allowed the two of them to do such things.

"Well I am going to take this chance and get a quick shower before we leave," Van said since they were taking their clothes with them instead of on the truck. He got up and left Fiona's warm embrace and walked towards his old room where his suitcase was located.

Van's mother watched Fiona as Van left the room and noticed she looked kind of sad. 'I am curious as to what is going on between them,' she thought with a look of concentration. "Fiona, why is it that Van won't leave Amy when he is obviously in love with you?" she asked. It had been on both her and her husband's mind for a long time.

Fiona suddenly tensed up a bit because she wasn't suspecting that to suddenly be brought up. "W-what do you mean by that?" she asked nervously which was quickly picked up by the elder couple. "I think I better get going, my mom is expecting me home soon," she said before quickly running out of the house with a sigh of relief.

"She is avoiding answering the question. Coming from someone who is always honest, that could only mean that something is up," Van's mother said suspiciously as she looked at the door to where Van had left to a minute before.

"Don't get too deep into it dear. They're teenagers and are allowed to have secrets. If it was serious then I am sure that they would have told us. Just give them their space and they will tell us about it when they are ready," Dan said standing up and taking his wife with him.

"I guess you are right. I just hope that nothing bad will come of it. Van has something good in Fiona and I don't want to see him ruin it because he decided to stay with Amy. Him and Fiona were made for each other!" she said growing more and more aggravated at the subject.

Dan just laughed at his wife's antics. She never was one to keep things to herself if she didn't have to. 'Much like Van in a way,' he thought with a smile as he let go and walked to the spare bathroom. "I know, but it is their choice," he said before he disappeared.

* * *

By the time that they got there the next morning, all the stuff had already been unloaded from the truck and was placed in each persons respectful rooms much to Van's relief because he was still sore from the previous day.

"The place already looks pretty good. There are some other things coming in soon that should complete the house," Dan said with an impressed whistle. "Why don't we get what we have unpacked? That is a good enough start for today," he said walking up the stairs to his and his wife's room.

Van walked up the stairs to his own room. He opened the door and saw all of his boxes scattered all over the place. His bed and stuff wasn't where he would want them to be but he knew he would just have to rearrange things later.

Van fell down upon his bed and stared up at the unfamiliar ceiling. It was so strange being in this new room. He knew that he would have to get used to it though. 'Not that that will be hard. It will be nice to live in luxury,' Van thought with a grin which he lost when he looked at the boxes. "Looks like I have to get to work," Van said before standing up and walking to the first box.

Most of the boxes Van could remember and easily tell which of his stuff were where. There were also a few newer boxes that looked like they carried things that had yet to be touched. 'Most likely dad just got some of them,' Van thought with a chuckle as he walked over to one of the new boxes.

"Awesome!" Van yelled in excitement when he learned that it was a large flat screen TV. He had never had a TV of his own before and he was really excited. The other boxes just had some new clothes and stuff like that, mostly just necessity items. 'Figures,' Van thought highly amused.

"I must say that this is definitely a great improvement over your old place," Amy's voice came from out of nowhere causing Van to turn around to see that she was standing in the doorway. "Sorry I just came in but the door was left wide open," she said although she didn't really sound all that sorry.

"I don't know, I found my old room rather cozy. I actually kind of miss it," Van said only to receive a confused glance from Amy. "Hey, you have always lived in luxury, this is still rather new to me so don't get on my case about why I like to live the way I used to," Van said in an agitated voice.

"Don't yell at me because of it! I was merely stating what I felt was the truth!" Amy said not feeling like taking anything like that from Van. "I see you still kept your old bed," Amy said with a sly smile as she walked over and sat on it. "Why don't you come over and join me on it," she said with a seductive smile.

Van just rolled his eyes before digging into boxes. "Exactly how many times are we going to go over this?" Van asked with a groan. 'Whatever happened to women wanting to wait till they were married to do that?' Van asked himself mentally.

"Come on Van, you are absolutely no fun," she said with a fake pout but she went ignored as Van just continued to dig things out of his boxes and putting them on the floor. "Don't tell me that you are going to unpack when I am here Van. Let's do something. I am bored," she groaned before falling onto the bed.

"If you are bored then you should just leave. Besides, I want to get this all finished as soon as possible. You will have your fun with the party I am holding this Saturday. So just wait till then," Van said throwing and empty box to the side and then digging into another.

"But that is so long from now," she said although in reality, it was only two days away. She just went ignored by Van and that annoyed her. "Fine! Have it your way! I know when I am not wanted," she said with a pout as she walked towards the door.

Van sighed because he knew that he had no other choice but to play it her way. "Listen, I just have had a lot to do lately and I want to get everything done so I can rest a little," Van said in a tired tone. It was really only one of the smaller reasons that he didn't hang out with Amy. "How about I just take you out tonight, will that be fine with you?" he asked as he leaned against a wall.

Amy smiled brightly because that was what she had been going for. "Ok then, I forgive you for ignoring me, but be sure to take me out someplace nice tonight," she said with a wave of her hand before running out of the room just as his father was walking into the room.

"Hm, I didn't even know that she was here," he said more to himself than to the only other person in the room. "So what do you think Van? It's nice, isn't it?" his father asked as he looked around the room. "Consider the TV a really early Christmas present," he said jokingly.

"It is really nice but so different from my old room. It will take a while to get it a way that I would like it to be but I think it will be a nice room," Van said as he stared around the really large room.

"Good to know. I will help you get the TV set up later today. Just try and get this place cleaned up a bit first," he said and started to walk out of the room before he stopped. "Oh by the way, since you are having that party this weekend, try to keep the house intact," he said with a laugh since he had already given Van permission to hold the party.

"Will do," Van said before turning back to the boxes while trying to remember which one held his bed supplies. He wanted to get a nap in because he was still tired after all they did yesterday.

It was silent for a few minutes after that. "Ah-ha!" Van yelled as he finally located the box in the large mess of boxes that were scattered all around. "Found you!" he said dragged a box out from it spot buried under several other boxes.

He opened the boxes and got out his bed items and threw them onto the bed. "Maybe I should get this place a little more sorted out before I do anything," he said since he could barely move around the room without accidentally kicking a box or two in the process. He got to work and had that done in about twenty minutes.

* * *

"A party sounds like a lot of fun, wouldn't you say Fiona?" Moonbay asked as she dragged Fiona throughout the mall. She was trying to find Fiona a bathing suit for the party that would turn all heads. She was attempting to drive Van nuts in the process.

"Sure, I guess that it does. I just hope that Amy won't try to pick some sort of fight with me while I am there. I am going to enjoy myself and I don't want anything to ruin that," Fiona said in all honesty. "Why is it she hates me? I have never done anything to her on purpose," Fiona said looking around at the store. She had thought of that question for years and could never find a true answer.

"Fairly simple answer to that Fiona, it is that she is jealous. She knows people like you and she feels threatened that everyone will like you better than her. She does what she does because she wants you to just bow at her feet like the rest of the school but you never do as she wants. She feels like you will take everything from her. Look at what you have taken from her already," Moonbay said not mentioning names since they were in a public place.

"Her jealousy is what got me what I have now. Guess you can say that it is now having an opposite affect of what she had originally had intended," Fiona said with a laugh as they entered a store that had what they were looking for.

Moonbay couldn't help but laugh at that situation. "Definitely not something that she originally had intended," she said as she looked through swim suits. It had been extremely warm there lately which was getting on everyone's nerves. Van had a pool and everyone intended to take advantage of the situation.

"How about this one Moonbay?" Fiona asked holding one up but Moonbay just shook her head. Fiona just put it back on the rack. "So what is it that we are looking for in specific?" Fiona asked hoping it wouldn't be anything that was too drastic.

Moonbay couldn't help but smirk at Fiona's question. "If Van is going to play by their game, we will play our own with his mind. Just for a little fun. He shouldn't have to ignore you because of what Amy tells him to do. We are going to piss her off because no one's attention will be on her when they see you," Moonbay said with a laugh and spotted the perfect thing.

Fiona looked at the swimsuit that Moonbay held up and gulped. 'Oh great,' Fiona thought with a chuckle. "That will do just fine Moonbay," Fiona said, glad that it wasn't anything as bad as she had thought of what Moonbay would choose.

Moonbay clapped her hands in delight and beamed. "Great! Now I saw we are ready to turn a few heads at the party this weekend. This is going to be fun," Moonbay said rubbing her hands together giving her a rather sinister look upon her face. Nothing that Made Fiona feel too good.


	18. party time

Fiona stood in front of a mirror and looked at herself in her new swimsuit. It was a blue two piece suit. She liked it because it was Van's favorite color. It had a skirt like section that tied around the right side of her waist and fell down towards her left thigh. A piece that was easily removable

It was a swimsuit that looked like it was made solely for her. She actually liked it but she was more curious as to what Van would think of it. He always said that she looked good in just about anything but she wanted there to be a real impact when Van saw her.

"Damn girl. You look good in that," Moonbay said walking into Fiona's room. She walked around Fiona like a vulture stalking its prey. Examining the suit for any flaws but she didn't find any. "You are definitely going to turn quite a few heads at this party. I know the one you want though," Moonbay said grinning which made Fiona blush modestly.

"Do you really think so Moonbay?" Fiona asked looking at herself in the mirror. She wasn't a vain person like Amy but she really wanted to look good for Van. She had never had this urge to do that for him before but the entire situation was really starting to get to her.

"Of course, would I lie to you?" Moonbay asked smiling. She walked over to Fiona's closet and looked for something for her to wear in public until they got to the party. 'Bingo!' Moonbay thought pulling out a yellow sundress and throwing it towards Fiona. It was easily removable for when Fiona felt like going swimming. Plus it made her look good.

'You look good Fiona," Irvine said leaning against the door frame. He knew Fiona wouldn't mind because he had no such interest in her. "My little baby sister is all grown up," he said wiping a fake tear off his eye but he was smirking while doing so.

"So are we going straight to the party or do we have stop somewhere first?" Fiona asked as they walked out of her room and out of the house with Fiona locking it behind her because her mother wasn't home at that moment.

"I have to stop at the store to pick up a few things but other than that, it is close to a non-stop trip there. I know you just can't bare to be away from him that long so I will make sure to make it as fast as possible," Irvine said hoping into the drivers seat of his car that he had been saving up for. He even got a part time job a few years back to buy it but it was all worth it.

Fiona really was kind of anxious to see Van. It had only been three days, but to her it felt more like three years. She had no idea that her love for Van would make her feel like this for Van.

Irvine sped off down the street in a bit of a hurry but without breaking any laws and got to the right store within a few minutes. "Do either of you want to go in?" he asked as he stepped out of the car.

Both of the females in the car shook there head no and he shrugged and walked into the store. He had a plan stored in his mind for that day and he only needed to get one thing for it to be fun.

Moonbay turned towards Fiona who was sitting in the backseat and smiled at her. "Hey Fiona, I have always been curious as to how much in love you actually are with Van. I don't know anything considering that you kept it from me for the past four years," she said with snort of anger. It was playful though and she was sure that even Fiona knew it.

"I have told you sorry about that at least a hundred times since then. As for Van, there is no real way in which I can describe my feelings for him. I love him so much that I hate it when I see Amy rubbing all over him or showering him with kisses. Sometimes I just want him for myself without all the secrecy," Fiona said silently but loud enough for Moonbay to hear her.

Moonbay couldn't help but let her grin widen. "If he was to ask you to marry him at this moment, what would you say to that? Ah, such sweet love, how can you say no?" Moonbay asked with a dreamy look in her eye. She seemed to space out for a second but she pulled herself back together.

"I probably would say no," Fiona said making Moonbay jump in surprise because she was sure that that wouldn't be Fiona's answer. "Under different circumstances, yes but not with the way that things are now. Not when he is still with Amy. I just can't get my hopes up like that when the future is uncertain," Fiona said honestly as she looked out the window with a depressed look on her face.

"Oh cheer up Fiona. I am sure that everything is going to work out in the end. True love always prevails," Moonbay said patting her friend on the shoulder before she turned around as Irvine got back in the car. She took the bag and grinned at what she saw inside. "Too good. This is going to be so much fun," she said putting it to the side.

'I wish you are right. But that type of thing only happens in fairy tales. This is real life and far more unfair than a story can ever be. If something bad can happen, it will most likely happen,' she thought as she stared out the window ignoring the talking of Irvine and Moonbay in the front seats.

* * *

Basically the entire senior class was there. It was chaos everywhere. People were running around, dancing, playing games, swimming in Van's giant pool. Needless to say, everyone was taking full advantage of that day to have some fun. And taking full advantage of what Van could give them now.

"No one ever seems this excited when I throw a party at my house. They all try to behave," Amy said from a lawn chair as she watched the rest of the students running all around her. "My house has all of this and yet they actually behave there," she continued to say tipping down some sunglasses that she was wearing.

Van couldn't help but give her a deadpan look when she said that. 'Maybe it is because they are all afraid of your father,' he thought but held his tongue. "No idea why," he lied taking a bite of some food that his mother had insisted on making for him and the rest of his classmates. He was glad that it wasn't health food junk. Not a way to have a party.

"I could easily throw a party like this if they actually wanted to do anything," Amy said arrogantly as she stood up and walked towards the pool to take a dip. Her movements caught the eye of everyone that was by the pool.

There was one thought on everyone's mind as she walked by them. 'Can she possibly show anymore skin?' It was true. The bikini she was wearing had a top that barely covered her breasts and the lower part was nothing but a thong. Made people wondered why she didn't just come nude instead. It was what she practically was in anyways.

Van rolled his eyes at all the people that were trying to get her attention and stood up walking back into his home. It was still strange to live in a place like this when he was raised in nothing but a small home all of his life. Now he was living in a mansion where there was more space than he was used to.

He was greeted by several of his classmates and he merely nodded back to most of them because he had never really gotten to know some of the people. He knew names but nothing about them.

He was a bit upset because he hadn't seen Fiona anywhere yet. He knew it was just because she hadn't gotten here yet but he wanted to see her soon or he would go mad. He hadn't seen her since the night before he moved in here and he was going nuts not seeing her.

Van walked into the kitchen and grabbed a soda from the refrigerator. He didn't provide it but alcohol still managed to get there and he wasn't really one to drink such stuff. He looked around the room at all the students who were talking but still saw no sign of Fiona.

Van jumped when a hand slammed against his back pushing him forward. He turned around quickly and came face to face with a grinning Irvine. "Hey! You almost made me spill my drink Irvine," Van said wiping off the small amount that did get out and onto his chest.

Irvine just chuckled at his angry friend. "Oh lighten up Van. I just came in to tell you that I am here and so is Fiona. Might want to watch out though, your jaw will drop when you see her so try to keep it in check," he said with a chuckle before he walked off to find Moonbay.

'I have seen her many times. How is it that this time will be any different from all of the other times?" Van asked himself as he started to walk around looking like he had nothing to do but he was actually looking for Fiona. 'Where is she?' he asked himself mentally as he looked around.

Van took a few steps and was jerked backwards suddenly when arms wrapped around his neck. He knew exactly who it was considering that Fiona wouldn't be so open about this sort of thing in public. She was aware of the consequences if she was to.

"Come on Van, come outside with me," Amy pouted wrapping her arms around him tighter. "Then again, Irvine just brought some trash here so the party is basically ruined. How could he hang out with losers like them and not with us?" Amy asked although it was more like she was talking to herself right then instead of to Van.

"Whatever you say," Van said with a fake chuckle as if he was amused by what she had told him. He turned around and saw that she still had the top uncovered but she was wearing a pair of shorts. In a way, he was slightly relieved that she tried to cover herself up.

"Know what I think Van?" Amy asked pecking him on the cheek. She didn't receive a reply but she did see the questioning look in his eyes. "I think that little girl might have a crush on you. Not that I can blame her," she said and felt Van start chocking on air. "I know, a disturbing thought, isn't it?" she asked taking it as a bad reaction to what she said.

"Yeah, hehe," he chuckled nervous with a little sweat coming down his forehead. He was nervous that she had figured it out for a second but she was just saying what she thought was right, not what she actually knew. 'If you only knew,' he thought as he finally escaped from her grasp. "I have to go find someone, I will talk to you in a bit," he said and she nodded.

"Sure, you can find me at the pool when you are finished with your business," she said kissing full on the lips before she left with a skip to her step in the direction of the pool with a bright smile on her face.

Van breathed a sigh of relief and walked up his stairs because he wanted to grab a few things from his room like his swim trunks because he was still in his normal clothing. He planned to have fun as well.

Van entered his room and grabbed his swim trunks and headed into his bathroom to change. He walked out two minutes later. He quickly stepped back when he saw that Amy was in his room soaked to the bone and also not wearing the top to her suit. "A-Amy what are you doing in here?" he asked nervously at the sight. It was like a train wreck, he just couldn't seem to look away.

Amy took his reaction as a good thing like he was too mesmerized by her to speak properly. "I just thought that since we are all alone up here that maybe we can take advantage of it while they are all enjoying themselves down there," she said in a seductive tone. She approached him and felt his back tense up as she pushed herself towards him.

Van was at a complete loss for words. He had never really seen a woman like this before. "Um…ah… we really… we really shouldn't be doing this," he said nervously as he pushed her away and tried as hard as he could to look away.

"Oh come on Van. We never get to have this sort of opportunity. Why is it that you don't want to?" she asked as she wrapped her arms around him again and started kissing him. "Are you gay or something?" she asked with a chuckle.

"Of course not!" Van yelled a little too loudly. He groaned when she still didn't remove herself. 'This is really starting to get old,' he told himself as he pushed her away again. "This just isn't the time for this. It just doesn't feel right at this moment," he said handing her back her top which she had basically dropped on the floor. "I will be back down in a minute or two," he said as she growled and left the room.

Van groaned and fell down onto his bed and ran a hand across his face. She had been trying to get him to do that for a while now but he just couldn't do something that special with someone that he didn't truly love. If he did, then he wanted it to be with Fiona and no one else. The problem was trying to find a way to get her to stop without raising her suspicions.

'I want this to end,' he groaned as he stood up and walked to window to look out it. He was surprised when the first thing he saw was Fiona walking out there near a bunch of flowers. She was really a sight to see.

His fists clenched at his side when he saw Thomas come walking up to her. He did not want that small fry to get in the way if his love for her. He turned around quickly and ran out of his room planning to do something before Thomas could try anything with her.

* * *

"Fiona!" Fiona heard Thomas yell and turned around. She saw him running towards her and she sighed and took a few steps forward. "Hey Fiona!" Thomas said happily as he managed to catch up with Fiona.

"Oh… hey Thomas. What are you doing here? I thought that you didn't like Van," Fiona said and Thomas was giving her a look like he wanted to know the same thing. "I just came with Irvine and Moonbay. I plan to avoid and confrontations though," she said with a small smile.

"Same here, I just came for fun," Thomas said feeling a bit embarrassed. He suddenly remembered what he was going to ask her so he took a deep breath. "Hey Fiona, do you have a date for the prom yet?" he asked and saw her shake her head sadly. "I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go with me," he said with a blush across his face.

Fiona thought it over. She knew that there was no other choice. Van had to go with Amy and Irvine was going with Moonbay. All others probably had a date by then. She also felt bad for Thomas. She did kind of stand him up on that one date earlier in the year. "I guess," she said with a sigh knowing it just wouldn't be the same as if she had gone with Van.

Thomas just couldn't believe his ears. Fiona had actually said that she would go with him. 'Maybe she got rid of that boyfriend of hers,' he thought happily and wrapped his arms around her. She struggled to get loose and he let her go. "You won't regret this Fiona," he said happily before he ran off.

'Yes I will. I always dreamed of going to prom with my boyfriend and you sure aren't that person,' she told herself and then spotted Van off to the side. He did not look to happy. She knew that he must have witnessed the entire scene.

Van looked around and took a few steps forward and then headed farther back where he was sure that nobody was and where no one could see them. "What did he want Fiona?" he asked trying to keep his temper under control. He knew what he heard but he just wanted to hear it come out of Fiona's own mouth.

Fiona sighed but decided to just say it even though he had a look like he already knew. "He just asked me to go to the prom with him. I said yes because I couldn't go with you," she said and saw his ticked off face.

Van was really pissed that she had actually said yes to him. "Fiona, he doesn't just want you to go to the prom with him. He wants you for his girlfriend," he said highly frustrated at the situation. He couldn't exactly blame her though. He was going with someone else also.

"Well I wouldn't have said yes if I could actually go with you! You are going with Amy though. Why don't you keep that in mind!" she said before walking away quickly with tears in her eyes. She wanted to get away before they said anything terrible about it. She knew that he didn't mean to sound so mean so she would just talk to him later about it.

Van groaned. Today was just not his day. This was the sort of situation that he had feared since they actually became a couple. He knew he couldn't give her what she wanted and he was afraid she would leave him for someone who could actually give her what she deserved.

Fiona stormed into the back of the house and towards the pool. She knew that it was the sort of thing that she needed to calm down. She felt bad though because she didn't want to fight Van about it. It just came out and she couldn't stop it.

Fiona looked at everyone that was there and groaned. 'Oh great!' Fiona mentally yelled as she saw Amy was already there and staring at her with the malice that was always in her eyes when she saw Fiona. "Just ignore her," she told herself so quietly that no one around her could hear what she was saying.

Fiona looked around again and she just went to the closest lawn chair to her and sat down. It was a decent distance from Amy so she felt like nothing bad could happen. She just wanted to enjoy the party while she could and not have to worry about fighting with anyone else. She knew it was a long shot hope but she went for it anyways.

She sat down and removed the sundress since her swimsuit was underneath. The earned her numerous catcalls from all of the male students that were around her. She also noticed that there was a jealous look in Amy's eyes since there were no eyes on her anymore and they were all on Fiona. One of her goals was to make Amy jealous and she succeeded. Now she wanted to drive Van nuts.

Van came around the corner to the pool and noticed everyone's attention was in one place. He looked over and his jaw dropped when he saw Fiona in the loveliest swimsuit he had ever seen. 'Whoa!' he mentally yelled as his eyes widened in surprise. He wanted to be with her now but he knew they needed to cool off first.

Amy was fuming with jealousy. No matter what she did, she could not get anyone's attention back on her. She wanted to strangle Fiona right then. She had been nothing but a pain since she had come to their school. Taking everyone's attention away from her.

Amy considered herself to be more beautiful, smarter, a better athlete, yet no one seemed to care as much as they used to. It was always Fiona. Her kindness, her innocence, and all that people thought that she had seemed to be on everyone's mind when Fiona was around. It was starting to drive her nuts.

Amy stood up from her seat and stormed over to Fiona. She saw Van walking over and smiled as well. "What are you, some sort of slut?" Amy snapped at her although Fiona had been doing her best to ignore all the stares that were coming towards her. "You are just trying to get everyone's attention for yourself with that toothpick body of yours!" Amy yelled at Fiona when she finally looked at her.

Van groaned and slapped his forehead. 'Does she know that her swimsuit is showing as much skin as possible? At least Fiona's is much more modest than hers is,' Van thought as he walked up but tried to stay out of the fight. He didn't have to speak his thoughts though, Fiona did it for him.

"This coming from the woman who is trying to show as much skin as possible?" Fiona asked looking at her with a look of I-don't-care. "What's the matter, jealous that the spotlight isn't on you for once?" Fiona asked actually showing a bit of anger. She hated how Amy was the center of everyone's attention but most of all Van's. She wanted revenge for that.

"How dare you!" Amy growled as she grabbed a hold of Fiona and picked her out of the seat. She pushed her back and Fiona was caught by one of the fellow classmates. "You think that you can get away with anything because you are teachers pet, don't you?" Amy yelled at her.

"Look who is talking. You have Prozen do all of your work for you. Have him get people who do nothing to you in trouble just so you can feel good about yourself. And you say that about me?" Fiona yelled as she pushed Amy back but she was caught by Van who just had the misfortune of being there right then.

"Thanks Van," Amy muttered angrily as she stepped away from him and towards Fiona. She snarled and got straight in her face. "Bitch!" she yelled slapping Fiona in the face really hard.

Fiona stumbled back in shock for a moment but got her composure back and got in Amy's face. She didn't want a confrontation but she knew that Amy was asking for this. She shoved Amy really hard causing her to stumble back quickly and even Van moved out of the way since she was coming too fast.

Amy knew she was about to fall into the pool since she couldn't stop. She fell in hard causing a large splash. 'How dare her!' she thought as she tried to find the right way to the top of the water.

Fiona hesitantly walked towards the edge of the pool and looked down to make sure that Amy didn't get killed. She hated her but she didn't want to kill her. That would make Van angry because he still likes her even though Amy was nothing but a spoiled brat to everyone around her.

She looked down into the water but before she knew it, she was suddenly grabbed by the leg when Amy sprung from the water and grabbed her. She was pulled into the pool as well and ended up hurting her ankle in the process. None of that seemed to matter as the two of them were wrestling in the water.

'This was supposed to be fun, not a fight,' Van thought with a groan as he looked for some sort of escape from the situation. He saw Irvine and ran towards him. "Irvine!" he yelled as Irvine turned to look at him. "We have to stop this!" he said and Irvine nodded.

The two of them jumped into the pool and immediately rushed over to the two girls separating them apart. Van grabbed a hold of Amy and pulled the still struggling woman back. Irvine grabbed Fiona and she didn't even struggle as he pulled her away.

"Enough!" Van yelled trying to stop the angry Amy from strangling Fiona. "This is not what I had in mind when I threw this party!" he yelled growing annoyed and then happy when he saw her finally settled down. "I don't want any fighting here!" he said to both of them. He knew Fiona didn't want to but he wasn't sure about Amy.

Irvine took Fiona and helped her out of the pool. He did notice that something was wrong though. "Are you ok Fiona? You're limping," he said but she just waved it off. "What happened?" he asked as he took her towards the house.

Fiona stopped and grabbed her stuff. "I am fine. I just kind of hurt my ankle slightly when I was pulled in. I will be fine if I just sit down for a little," she said drying herself off and then putting back on her sundress before she followed him into the house. It wasn't bad, it was just stinging slightly.

"Yeah, well I think we should at least put ice on it for a little while. You can never take any chances that something else could happen to it," he said as she sat down in a chair in the kitchen while he walked over to the freezer and grabbed some ice and putting them into a small bag.

"I'm telling you that I will be fine Irvine. It isn't that bad," Fiona said but she knew that Irvine wouldn't let it go until she agreed. Especially with the look he was giving her when she said that. "Fine!" she groaned and took the ice pack that he held out to her.

Irvine smiled at her before he turned around to go and find Moonbay. He hadn't seen her at the fight and she was usually the first one to see one of those. It made him wonder if something happened to her.

Fiona groaned and leaned back in the chair holding the icepack to her ankle. She sat up straight when she felt eyes on her and turned her head slightly to see Van standing at the opening to the kitchen staring at her. He then turned and headed up the stairs by himself.

Fiona remained seated for a little bit before she stood up and walked with a very small limp towards the stairs and up it after Van. She saw him head into one of the spare bedrooms. It was a spacious room but it was rather bare except for a small bed that was in the middle of it all.

She walked in and saw Van standing there waiting for her. "I didn't exactly start that. You seemed really mad afterwards and I am sorry," she said and felt Van carefully pick her up and set her onto the bed.

Van kneeled down and carefully examined her ankle to make sure that nothing was wrong. "I know that you didn't want to get into a fight. I saw the whole thing. You tried to ignore her up until the point that she shoved you. So I can't blame you for shoving back," he said standing up. "You're ankle isn't even swollen. It won't take long for it to get better," he said helping her up.

"That was what I was telling Irvine," Fiona replied resting her head in Van's chest. "Sorry about the argument earlier. I wish that I could go to prom with you and not him. It isn't fair that I can't go with the one person I really want to go to," Fiona sighed as she listened to his heartbeat.

"The argument wasn't your fault. I shouldn't have snapped like that. I just hated how you accepted his offer. Call me jealous or whatever but I hate to see you with someone else," Van said with his head towards the ground. He felt Fiona lift his head up before he felt her lips upon his in a kiss.

Fiona broke away from the kiss with a smile on her face. "Why don't we just forget about it all? On one condition, I want a dance on prom night. I don't care where, I just want one," she said playfully which made Van laugh.

"So be it, my lady," Van said acting all proper when he knew that he was far from it. I had better get back downstairs before Amy comes looking for me. Be sure to stay for the rest of the party. It is a lot better having you around even if I can't talk to you," he said and she nodded before he walked out of the door.

Van walked out of the door and turned towards the stairs just as Amy came walking up them. "What are you doing in there Van? That isn't your room," she said after seeing him come out of the empty room.

'Think fast, think fast,' Van thought to himself sweating a little. "I just thought I heard someone in there. I was just checking it out since I told everyone that they are supposed to stay out of the upstairs," he said with a shrug as he walked over to her and then past her down the stairs.

'He's hiding something,' Amy thought as she turned the opposite way and towards the door. She opened it up and walked inside to find it empty. She walked into the room and looked around expecting to find something in the room. She looked under the bed, in the closet, and in the joining bathroom but found nothing in there.

'I have really got to start trusting him a little more. It isn't like he is going to chest on me anyways. Him and I both know that,' she thought before shrugging like Van before leaving the room.

Fiona had heard her coming after Van had left the room. She was quick to think because she had a suspicion about what would happen. She opened the window and climbed down some very sturdy vines that she had found earlier that day and ran back to the rest of the students before Amy even came into the room.

Fiona came to a walk before she came around the corner to join the rest of her classmates. This was just as Van had come walking out of the door. The look on his face was priceless. He was shocked that she was here when he just left her in the room a minute before. He didn't know how she'd done that.

Fiona sat down in one of the lawn chairs and just relaxed. Many had come up to her asking if she was ok but she could say that her ankle wasn't bothering her anymore. It was almost as if it had never been hurt in the first place.

That was the way that the rest of the party went. She actually started to have a good time because Van had managed to convince Amy to not even speak to Fiona. It looked like she was reluctant to not start a fight but she gave into the request anyways. So Fiona had nothing but a good time there.

* * *

'No, no, no. You are doing it wrong Moonbay!" Irvine said in a hushed whisper as the two of them were preparing something to make their day. It was definitely going to be good to do this.

"Sure I am. Never mind, let's just quit arguing and focus on the task. She is coming, so let's get ready," Moonbay said as they looked out a window as Amy was walking down the yard back towards the pool later in the afternoon. She was all by herself, just like Irvine and Moonbay wanted.

Amy walked down the yard without a care in the world. The incident earlier that morning no longer seemed to affect her and she just went on as she normally did. 'She has nothing compared to me anyways. I am the better of the two of us. I will be prom queen and valedictorian for the class. Nothing that she will ever have,' she thought haughtily.

She jumped back quickly when something suddenly exploded in front of her causing her ankles to get wet. She looked around but didn't say anything but it then happened again from right behind her.

"Who's there!" she yelled looking around but not seeing anyone. She then looked up but that was a big mistake. Her eyes widened in surprise as she saw at least a dozen water balloons falling quickly towards her. She knew that she wouldn't be able to dodge them all.

They came down fast and hard with at least half of the balloons hitting Amy. She was soaked to the bone and mad as hell. She looked up just in time to see Irvine and Moonbay's heads pop back into the house. She could distinctly hear laughing and that made it even worse.

She growled and stormed towards the back where she was sure that she would find her boyfriend. She knew that he was most likely screwing around but she didn't really care about that.

Just as she had thought, she found Van in a water wrestling match with another classmate. Similar to what she was doing earlier except he was just doing it for fun and not doing it to get everyone's attention away from Fiona and back on her where she thought it belonged.

Van grinned as he got out of the pool. 'He never stood a chance,' he thought cockily as he dried himself off. He then saw Amy approaching him and she was soaking wet while still in her normal clothes. "What happened to you, decide to go for a swim in the pool with your clothes on?" he asked with a chuckle.

The glare that she gave him made him take a step back. "No! I will have you know that it was that so-called friend of yours Irvine and that freak Moonbay!" she yelled at him in her fury. She knew she needed some way to vent her fury and she found it by pushing poor Thomas into the pool.

Van watched the event with mild curiosity. He didn't care what happened to Thomas because he had been ogling Fiona all day because of her bikini and it was really starting to grate on Van's nerves to no ends. He figured that he might as well say something. "Was that really necessary?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

"No, but it was fun," she said suddenly feeling chirpy again now that she had let off some of the steam that she had been keeping in. she didn't say anything but grabbed Van by the wrist and pulled him into the house in search of his Irvine and Moonbay so retribution could be achieved.

Giving him a hand, Fiona helped Thomas out of the pool. She groaned when she saw him blush at the extended hand because she was wearing only her swimsuit while doing this. It was getting a bit irritating. "Are you ok Thomas?" she asked kindly.

"I'm fine," he said looking off to the side a bit. He remembered when he first saw Fiona in her swimsuit that he just about had a nosebleed. "That was rather rude of her to do such a thing when I didn't even do anything to her," he mumbled as he walked away since he knew he had to get home then.

"Since when has she ever had to have a reason to be as rude as she has been?" Fiona asked no on in specific. She sat back down in one of the chairs and just laid back staring at the sky. "She gives no respect to anyone," she muttered to herself before standing up again.

She looked around and saw that there weren't many people left. The party had been going on all day and everyone was starting to leave. Less than probably a quarter of the original amount of students there were here now and even they were leaving since the sun was already starting to set.

It was probably less than fifteen minutes later that everyone was gone. The sun had set a few minutes before and the sky was already dark. The house was empty except for a lot of trash that Fiona knew that Van would have to pick up alone if no one helped. She knew that Amy would never resort to doing manual work. It just wasn't her style.

Fiona walked into the house and saw Van already cleaning up by himself. "Amy gone?" she asked quietly and she saw Van nod his head and let out a sigh of relief. "Good," she said with a sigh as she got on her knees and started to help Van pick up because she knew that it would be an all-night job if she didn't help him out.

Van looked up to see Fiona helping him out. He was grateful but felt that she didn't have to. "You don't have to do that Fiona. It was my party so it is my job to clean up the trash afterwards," he said placing his hand on hers to stop her before she did anything.

"I know I don't but I want to," she said with a smile as she pulled her hand out of his grip. "Where is Irvine and Moonbay? Maybe we can get them to help out since a lot of this was probably there mess as well," Fiona said looking around trying to find their missing friends.

"No idea. They are probably still hiding from Amy since they dumped water balloons on her head about an hour ago. They probably still don't know that she has already left," Van said shrugging his shoulder before placing a large amount of garbage in the trash bag he was holding.

"Well I am going to look for them. I will still need a ride home when we finish this up. Care to join me?" she asked with a sweet smile which Van just couldn't refuse to say no to. "Good," she said taking his hand as they started their search through the large house.

"How about you just stay here tonight? It will make it a lot easier on everyone that way," he said and laughed at Fiona's beaming face. "I guess that I will take that as a yes," he said and her head bounced up and down happily. "That also reminds me that you haven't gotten a proper tour of this place yet. Today was the first time that you have actually seen it since we moved in," he said tightening his grip on her hand.

Van led her up the stairs since she has basically seen all of the downstairs just like the rest of the class. "This place has three floors. My room is on the third floor. Hope you like climbing. Any sure doesn't," he said causing both of them to laugh at the thought of her complaining about all of the stairs.

Van led her to the third floor figuring that he would work his way down. "We can also do our search while I give you the grand tour," he said as he led her to the closest door. "This is Maria's room for when she is actually around. The one I took you to earlier is just a guest bedroom. No need to worry about that though because you will be staying with me," he said causing her to blush.

The room was very similar to the other room she was in earlier. It was bare since Maria hadn't been around to decorate it the way that she would have liked to. A few boxes of Maria's belongings that she left behind when she left for college were the only things there except for a bed.

"I wonder what it will look like when Maria actually gets a chance to do something with it," Fiona said but Van just shrugged his shoulders before leading her out and closing the door behind him.

He led her to another door that was a small double door. "Behind here is my parent's room," he said opening the door to let Fiona see. She stared wide eyes at the beauty that it already was.

The room was gorgeous to Fiona. Everything was already unpacked and taken out of the room so that it didn't make it look cluttered. 'Leave it to Van's mother to make something look perfect in just a few days. When I first moved here, my room was messy for at least a week and it was a lot smaller than this one,' Fiona thought in amazement.

"I will never figure out how she can keep doing things like this," Van muttered although Fiona heard anyways. "Dad and I have been trying to pry her away from the room to get some rest since we first moved in but she wouldn't budge until she was finished," Van said causing Fiona to laugh.

Van led her away from his parent's room and then led her to their next destination which was none other than his own room. There weren't all that many rooms on the floor but all of them were larger than any normal persons room would be.

"Leave it to you to be messy," Fiona said with a chuckle as she walked into the room and saw boxes stacked up messily in the corner. It looked like the lightest touch would send them all falling over. "It looks good with what you have done though," she said plopping down on the bed with a sigh at how comfortable it felt.

Van sat down and laid back taking Fiona with him so that she was laying on his chest. "I still have a lot of work to go before I can get this place the way I want it to be. We also have a few things coming in later in the week which will make me have to wait until I can get certain things unpacked," he said with a groan.

Fiona felt too comfortable right then. She could already feel herself drifting off to sleep. She probably would have or already did before Van shook her back to reality when he realized what she was doing. "Huh?" Fiona said lifting her head off of his chest too look into his smiling face.

Van just chuckled at the face she was making. "Don't fall asleep yet Fiona. There is still a lot that you have to see," he said standing up and sticking out his hand to help Fiona up. He got her to her feet and without letting go of her hand, led her out of the room and down the stairs to the second floor.

Van led her to a large door and opened it up and he felt Fiona immediately let go of his hand and rushed into the room with a wowed look on her face. It was a room that could be used for an office. There were hundreds of books already lined up along the walls.

Van knew that this was the type of place that Fiona would like. She was always into reading books unless she was with him. He always kept her way to occupied to do anything of the sort. "This is my father's study. Everyone is welcome in her at anytime though," he said with a laugh.

Fiona was running around the room looking at several of the books on the wall. There were encyclopedias, dictionaries, books on ever language known to man. There was also shelf after shelf of stories that looked like they would be very interesting to read if given the chance.

"Wow! This place is amazing Van!" Fiona said happily as she garbed a book off the shelf and flipped through the pages before putting it back on the shelf. "I wish I was in your shoes, except for the whole Amy things. It must be great to be able to have all of this stuff," she said indicating the entire study.

Van couldn't help but laugh at her childish behavior. She was like a child who had just been given a candy store. "You sure are easy to please," he said walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. He kissed the back of her neck which caused her to moan.

He was about to step but Fiona caught his arms and kept them where they were. "Please don't let go," she pleaded silently. She felt like if he let go that she would lose him to Amy. Her happy disposition changed quickly to that of a scared one.

Her mood change happened so quickly. She did it at a speed that Van didn't even know a person could do. "Don't worry Fiona. I will always be right here by your side. I will never leave you," he said as if he knew exactly what it was that she was feeling. Actually, he did know exactly what she was thinking in that one moment.

Fiona sighed knowing that he wouldn't. "I know you won't leave," she said turning her head to rest on his shoulder. She felt him kiss her forehead and her eyes closed in bliss at the feel of his warm lips upon her skin.

The two of them stayed that way for a while. Van then let go after a few minutes but still kept her close as he left the room with Fiona in tow. He still had a lot that he wanted to show her of his new home.

He led her further down the hall skipping over the one that they were in earlier because she had already seen it and approached a room. He opened it and it was completely empty. Unlike the room her skipped, this one didn't have anything in it, not even one piece of furniture.

"I know that it may look kind of plain right now but as soon as we can, it will be turned into a game room when we can get some things for it. I am going to see if I can get every game system possible for her," he said with a childish grin on his face like he was a child who could get anything he wanted from a toy store.

"Knowing you, this place will be filled with so much stuff that it will be hard to move around," Fiona said and laughed when he nodded his head enthusiastically. "You just like a child Van," she said and laughed loudly when he just grinned down at her even wider. 'It was supposed to be an insult,' she thought highly amused.

"That is most of the important rooms of the house. The rest are just boring places like the laundry room and stuff like that. I am sure that you don't want to see those places," he said as he led her out the door and to the stairs.

The two of them walked down the stairs after the tour was over. They were both surprised that they hadn't seen Irvine or Moonbay anywhere. The car was still here so they knew that the two of them were as well. The question was where they were and why they were still hiding. They should have known that Amy wouldn't stay around for that long.

The two of them walked down into the still messy room that they had left for the tour. Fiona suddenly came to a stop because she thought she heard something. "Van, wait," she said pulling him back since he was still walking. "Do you hear that?" she asked him and waited for a second before she saw him nod his head. "What is it?" she asked trying to find out where it was coming from.

"No idea but I think that it is coming from over here," Van said as they walked in one direction. The noises just got louder confirming that they were in the right direction. It ended up leading them to a closet.

Van was hesitant at first but he reached his hand out and grasped the door knob. The door swung open and both of their eyes nearly bugged out of their heads at the sight of Irvine and Moonbay making out. They weren't even aware that the two of them had anything going on before then.

Van quickly slammed the door shut and just stood there in shook for a moment. He had absolutely no idea what it was that he should say. He could tell that Fiona was speechless as well. He could hear scrambling in the closet for a second before Irvine and Moonbay came out flushed.

"It's not what it looks like!" the two of them yelled at the same time to their two extremely shocked friends. It was almost like they were incapable of speech. But Van and Fiona clearly gave them looks like they didn't believe them.

"So… uh… you two just being caught making out wasn't as it seemed. Sure looked real to me," Van said finally finding his voice and smirking at the two of them. They were always teasing him and Fiona about their relationship and now he felt it was time to turn the tables on them.

Fiona saw that Irvine and Moonbay were completely speechless. They were obviously trying to think of some excuse for what they were doing. "I thought you two just said that nothing was going on between you a few days ago. This sure does look like something is going on," she said figuring she would tease them as well.

"Not you too Fiona," Moonbay groaned knowing that even her best friend was against her on this. She was starting to regret all the times that she had teased Van and Fiona about their relationship. It was all starting to come back to haunt her now because these two weren't going to go easy on them about this.

Fiona saw Moonbay sigh in defeat and knew that they might get some answers out of them now. Fiona was very curious about this sudden change in relationship between these two and wanted to get as many answers out of them as she possibly could. "When did this all start?" she asked curiously.

"Around the same time as yours," Moonbay muttered and stared at their shocked faces. "So we didn't feel like mentioning it. It isn't like you two were very eager to tell me about all that was going on. I was in the dark for four years. Now you know how it feels," she said crossing her arms in a defiant pose.

"It was when you were still in the hospital but after you woke up. Moonbay was feeling really bad for what happened at school that day. She was basically blaming herself for you being humiliated that way. I was just attempting to cheer her up but that ended up happening," Irvine said to the two stunned teens.

"I always knew you two would end up together. It is a good match with Irvine's hardheadedness and Moonbay's stubbornness. Wouldn't you say so Van?" Fiona asked with a broad smile on her face.

"Yeah, perfect match. So when are the kids coming?" Van asked making both Irvine and Moonbay blush fifty different shades of red. Van just started to laugh his head off at the looks that were on their faces.

"Looks who's talking. You and Fiona will probably have one within the next two years," Irvine said making Fiona and Van have the exact same reaction as them. "Don't you think so Moonbay?" he asked with a grin.

"Not at all," Moonbay said making Van and Fiona calm down a little. "I say within a year, give or take a month or two," she said before they both broke out laughing at the scarlet faces of Van and Fiona. Fiona was so red that it was hard to find her eyes because they were the same color as her face.

"Want to make a bet?" he asked and Moonbay nodded her head enthusiastically. "A hundred bucks to the winner paid by the loser," he said with a grin and Moonbay made one of equal intensity.

Van and Fiona were completely clueless how their taunting was turned against them so quickly. They were even more clueless how the two of them were already making bets for when they first child was born when they weren't even able to be together in public yet.

"Let's just drop the subject, shall we?" Van asked making the two of them stop arguing about who was right. As you can see we have a lot of work to do to get this place cleaned up," Van said and grabbed Irvine and Moonbay by the back of their shirts as the two of them tried to sneak away while he wasn't looking. "And you two are helping," he said considering this payback for the teasing.

Irvine and Moonbay groaned as they were literally dragged back into the main room of the house. The floor was filthy and they knew that it will take a long time to get it all picked up. All plans for the night suddenly were worthless and they were stuck doing this because Van was not letting them out of it.

It took nearly two hours to get the entire house spotless and as clean as it was before the party even started. There were piles of garbage bags set off to the side waiting to be taken out.

"Finally!" Van said happily as he plopped down on the couch with Fiona next to him. "I thought that we would never get it finished. Now my parents won't be pissed to come back to a filthy home and I get my ass chewed out for letting it get so bad with my party," Van said as Fiona laid her head on his shoulder.

"Lucky you. I just lost the rest of my night helping you. Why exactly is it that you made the two of us help you anyways?" Irvine asked as he stretched his shoulder where a bit of a cramp was forming in it. His back wasn't very good either while they were putting the equipment outside away. the stuff was heavy.

"First off it was your idea to have this party in the first place," Van said making Moonbay glare at Irvine for getting her involved in the cleanup. She couldn't leave unless he left and he was stuck here because it was his idea for the party so he had to stay and clean up. "Second, consider it payback for the teasing you were doing earlier. We really didn't appreciate it," Van said chuckling to himself.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up Van," Irvine said with a sneer before he stood up. "I'm leaving. I really need to get some sleep," he said with a yawn. "Come on Fiona, come on Moonbay," he said heading towards the door but only Moonbay followed him. "Aren't you coming Fiona?" he asked turning around to look at her.

"That's ok. I am going to be staying here tonight. You two can just go ahead and do whatever it is that you feel like doing," Fiona said in a suggestive tone but was taken back by the grins that suddenly formed on their faces.

The two of them smirked as they turned and walked towards the door. They spoke loud enough for the two of them to hear them. "Looks like it will be sooner than either of us thought," Moonbay said before her and Irvine ran out of the house at top speed before Van made them do anymore work.

"Moonbay!" Van yelled in embarrassment. It was too late because they were gone. Van plopped down on the couch and wrapped his arm around Fiona's shoulder. "Those two will never learn," he said and smiled when she laid her head on his shoulder.

Fiona looked at the clock and saw that it was only nine at night. "I thought it would be later than that," she said making Van look at the clock and shrug his shoulders. "What do you think we should do now? We have the entire place to ourselves," she said with a yawn.

"I say that we go to bed. It has been a long day. Or maybe we can put in a movie. What is it that you want to do Fiona?" he asked kissing the top of her head as she sighed in content at his touch. He loved to see her happy so he will do anything to make that happen. He just wished he could give her the ultimate happiness.

"A movie sounds nice but it will probably just fall asleep during it. Might as well put it in anyways. We still have a lot of time," she said and Van stood up and walked towards the big screen TV that was across from them. She smiled when she saw what he put on. It was probably her favorite movie. "You're so sweet Van," she said kissing his cheek.

"Anything for you Fiona. As long as you are happy then I am happy," he said taking his seat and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. He watched the movie intently even if he had seen it several time before with Fiona.

It was probably half an hour later that Fiona was already asleep. Van found that he wasn't as tired as he originally thought he was a half an hour ago. He looked towards Fiona and a frown crossed his face as he watched her peacefully sleeping form.

Van carefully removed himself from her and laid her down on the couch and covered her with a blanket. He turned the TV off and quietly left the room and walked up the stairs and into the study that he showed Fiona earlier in the day.

He took a seat behind the desk that was in there and booted up the computer. He remembered how scared she seemed earlier that day when they were in there. She always put up a strong front but he knew that what he saw was what she was truly feeling. He didn't want her to be that way anymore. He didn't want her to fear that she would lose him because of this forced relationship that he was in.

Van stared at the computer for a second before he set to work. He pledged to himself that he wouldn't make her feel that way again. He planned to fight this even harder than before. He would find a way out of his situation and ensure that he would always see that smile on her face. Never again would he see her scared at the thought of losing him.

* * *

I would like to make a deal with all of you readers. since many seem to like this story more than the rest. If i can get at least10 reviews, then i will begin work on the next chapter and get it finished when i have time. If i get to 200 which is only 15 away, then i will be sure to work on only this story until i get the next chapter finished. That will be the way for the rest of the chapters but the second part is only for this one 200total reviewswill get you the next chapter quickest. 10 reviews per chapter is all i am asking other than that. Thanks!


	19. announcement

Van groaned and fell back onto his bed. It was Sunday night and he had no luck with finding anything to get him out of his situation. It was like there wasn't anything that he could do.

He knew this was to be expected anyways. It wasn't the first time that he looked for some way to get out of this mess he was in. There were several times he did after fights with Amy. That was before he got together with Fiona. Now he had more reason to do so.

He knew that Maria would be willing to help him if he asked her but he refused to ask his father. He knew that his father could help but he knew it was a great risk to his family to do so. He would only resort to that if things got too out of control for him.

For the entire weekend, he had been trying to find anything to use against Hiltz to make him drop this. Hiltz cared too much about his money to take any sort of risks that would end up causing him to lose it all. It was the one goal that Van had. He had come close a few times to succeeding but Hiltz ended up finding out and Van lost all of his progress.

He had no idea how the man knew what he was doing all the time. He just hoped the man didn't know about Fiona. He could handle anything else but if he was told to stay away from Fiona, he felt like he would go crazy. It just wasn't an option for him to fail this time.

Van knew his parents wouldn't allow him to lose Fiona either. His father was already in his back for having two girlfriends and tended to yell at him every tine they were alone with neither Fiona or Amy around

Van sighed and hit his hand against his wall to let out some of his frustration. He hated having to keep secrets but he just couldn't come out and say what he needed to do. "If only you knew dad," Van muttered to himself as he leaned on his side. He wanted help but he couldn't get it.

"If only I knew what?" his father asked from the doorway causing Van to jump high into the air and fall off the bed hitting his head on the floor. A long stream of curse words came out. "You don't want to let your mother hear you saying all that. She wouldn't be happy," he said with a smile as he leaned against the door. "So what's up. Something I need to know?" he asked studying Van carefully.

Van stood up rubbing his head while also trying to think of some excuse as to why he said that. "Um… I… uh… did I say that?" he asked stupidly. He saw his father give him a puzzled look. "You must have heard wrong," he said nervously scratching the back of his head.

"No, I am pretty sure that I heard right. So what is it that you are hiding young man?" he asked looking down at Van as the younger male backed up a few steps nervously. "What are you hiding?" he asked seeing the younger man flinch under his stare.

Van was frantic for some sort of explanation. 'It's a long shot,' he told himself before smiling and calming down. "Oh yeah, now I remember. I was just thinking about a scene from I story I was reading in school earlier today. I guess I accidentally said part of it out loud. It is nothing really?" Van said putting on a smile that he knew could fool just about anyone.

His father looked at him for a couple of seconds trying to find any hint of a lie but didn't see any. "Really? What book is that?" he asked trying to see if Van was lying or not. He saw Van open his mouth but he suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around and came face to face with his wife.

"Oh give him a break Dan. By the way, dinner is ready you two. Better get down there before it gets cold," she said with a smile before she turned around and left towards the stairs happily.

"I can never understand how she can be so happy," Dan said before turning towards his son. "Listen, before we go eat, I need to talk to you about something," he said taking a seat across from Van. "What's going on? Why are you with both Fiona and Amy? I'll keep asking you this until I get a clear answer," he said staring at Van.

Van groaned because it had really been a constant question ever since his father found out about him and Fiona being together a month ago. Van knew he was looking out for him but he didn't want to tell for fear of something happening. "I don't know," he said with a shrug of his shoulders. He looked like he didn't care too much about the topic at hand.

"Van," Dan groaned in an exasperated voice but was caught off by the yelling of his wife telling them to get down there right then or they weren't going to eat that night. He jumped up and walked quickly out of the room after that. "We will talk about this later," he said before walking down for food.

Van stayed in his room for a moment before he too left and headed towards the kitchen. He came to a stop when he heard whispering from the kitchen. He could tell they didn't want anyone to hear but he was able to hear them rather clearly.

"Something is wrong Julie. Van is not himself lately. It isn't like him to lead on two women like he has been doing. I try asking him what is going on but he always dodges the question," Dan said as he leaned back in his seat as his wife sat closely to him.

"Dan, you have to realize that Van is a teenager and teenagers will end up making mistakes. I may not like what he is doing but all we can do is talk to him about it and hope that at some point he will listen. He tell us when he is ready," she said kissing his cheek. After she pulled away, she broke out coughing a lot.

Dan was immediately up and by his wife's side trying to help her. "Are you ok dear? I knew you have been overworking yourself lately. You should really take it easy," he said in a worried voice when her coughing fit was over. This was something that wasn't new to her but it always worried him when she did this.

Julie looked up at her husband and gave him the best smile that she could. "I am fine Dan. I just need a good nights rest and then I will be better than ever. I am not going to let anything happen. At least until I see Van and Fiona's children," she said with her beaming smile.

Van groaned from the stairs and Dan laughed out loud. 'What is with her and grandchildren?' was the main question on both of the men's minds. They had to admit that it was good to know that she wouldn't give up at least until that happen. She would want to stick around though.

Van walked the rest of the way down the stairs and over to the table. He tried to put on his best smile to hide the nervousness he was feeling about hearing their conversation. He knew they were worried but he just wouldn't let them know. It might make things worse than it already was. "So… what's for dinner?" he asked smiling brightly.

* * *

Everyone was anxious for the day to be over. It wasn't just that but they were also going to be announcing who it was that would be on prom court sometime during their current bell. Unfortunately it was only third bell on a nine bell schedule. Meaning they still had a long ways to go till the end of the day. 

"This is so exciting," Moonbay said happily as she looked around at all the students since the teacher had yet to arrive. "I can't wait to see Amy's face when she sees that you are on it Fiona," she said looking around her trying to decipher who would vote for who. She was usually good at those sort of things.

Fiona groaned and laid her head on her desk. "Moonbay, there is no indication that there is anyone beside you and Irvine who would actually want me to be on it," she said leaving out Van's name since they were in public. "I don't think that they will be voting for me either," she said lifting up her head and quieting down as the teacher entered the classroom.

"That's not what I think. So… I heard that you are going with Thomas to the prom. Sorry you didn't get to go with who you wanted to go with Fiona," she said giving Fiona a piteous look on her face.

Moonbay had seen Thomas practically bragging that he was going with Fiona all day. It was really starting to get on her nerves and she just wanted to shut him up about it. It wasn't just that but Amy was bragging about prom court when it hadn't even been announced that she was on it yet. Even Moonbay knew that she would be on it though.

The teacher placed his things on the desk and walked in front of the class. He was about to speak when the announcements came on. "Good morning all you seniors," the principal said happily. "We have tallied all your votes over the weekend and we are pleased to announce your candidates for the prom king and the prom queen," he said knowing he had everyone's attention.

Fiona didn't pay as much attention but she still did listen to parts of what the principal was saying. She thought that it didn't matter what Moonbay said, she felt like it was impossible for her to be elected for something like this. She wasn't that popular with the class.

"The candidates for the prom king are as follows. Van Flyheight, Josh O'Bryan, Irvine Saix, and Terrance Philip. Congratulations to all of you," he said happily in the loudspeaker.

Everyone knew that Van was sure to win it all. He was well liked and sought after by ever girl in the school. Amy drives them all away though. So they are all too scared to make any attempts at him.

It was a few moments before the principal came back on. "Now for the candidates for the prom queen are as follows. Amy Jewel, Terri hawk, Gina Rose, and Fiona Lynette. Congratulations ladies," he said happily before shutting off the loud speakers.

Fiona actually fell out of her chair and landed on the floor hard when she heard her name mentioned. Never in a million years would she actually think that it was possible, but it was. She was actually a candidate for prom queen. She hoped that she did. Van was sure to win and then there is the king and queen dance.

Fiona was in a dreamy state that she didn't see Moonbay staring at her with a bright grin. "What did I tell you Fiona? You are far more popular than you give yourself credit for. People obviously seem to like you," she said before turning to the front of the class as the teacher started to speak.

Fiona just couldn't' concentrate in the class for the rest of the bell. The idea that she could be prom queen meant a lot to her and she just couldn't stop thinking about it. She sure hoped that Amy wouldn't win it.

* * *

Van was close to laughing out loud when he heard the announcement. He was ecstatic about Fiona being elected for prom court and hoped that she won. He could tell Amy was greatly upset by this but he just remained quiet and didn't say anything or she would take all of her anger out on him instead. 

When class ended, Van immediately picked up his things and ran out of the room along with the rest of the class. It was like a ticking time bomb in there with Amy. She had been holding it in all bell and they all knew that she would be letting it out right about then.

"WHAT!" everyone in the entire school heard the yelling from the classroom. Amy came storming out of it and straight towards a nervous Van. "Why the hell is it that she has been nominated for this?" She yelled at him even though he looked scared enough as it was.

"I don't know," Van said calming down and shrugging his shoulders. 'Yeah you do, you were one of the people that voted for her,' his mind told him. He wanted the day to end so he could talk to Fiona and congratulate her about it.

"This has to be some sort of mistake! Who in their right minds would vote for her? She is a stuck up, self-centered bitch," Amy yelled out glaring at those around her trying to decipher who it was that voted for Fiona.

"Talking about yourself Amy? Because it can't be possibly be about Fiona. I don't think it is possible for her to be what you just said," Irvine said with a laugh as he passed by them.

Amy turned her rage up him. "Shut up Irvine!" she yelled making him gulp slightly. "I don't even know why you hang out with her. You can become more popular if you would just stop hanging out with that group of losers!" Amy yelled taking steps towards him.

"Only more popular in your eyes. Everyone else loves me," he said in a rather conceited tone. "Besides, her company is a lot better than yours any day," he said before walking off without listening to another word from the annoying woman.

"I am going to have to have a serious talk with whoever is in charge about this. Some sort of mistake must have been made. She is taking the spot from someone far more deserving," Amy muttered before walking off with anger radiating off of her. It was clear for everyone to see.

Van sighed and ran after her before she made a fool out of herself. "Is it really that big of a deal?" he asked and she glared at him. There was another reason he never left her besides the problem with her father. It was her anger. He was scared to death of it.

Amy grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and glared at him. "Yes! It is a big deal Van!" she yelled looking into his eyes. She then looked behind him and her eyes flared in even more anger than before. She shoved Van to the side hard and stormed in the direction of her rival.

'Oh great!' Van complained in his mind when he saw what his girlfriend was about to do. 'I have really got to do something about that temper before I leave her. It will be worse for me if I don't,' he thought running after her quickly before the inevitable fight broke out.

Fiona was talking peacefully with Moonbay when she was forcefully turned around and put face to face with her worst enemy. This scene seemed familiar considering that it happened only a few days before, only this time there was no pools around to throw Amy into.

"Just what the hell did you do to get on prom court? Did you fuck everyone in the school?" she yelled angrily. What made her more pissed off was the defiant look in Fiona's eyes. "In what world do you think that you can beat me? Why don't you drop out now and save yourself the embarrassment?" she asked glaring a look of death at Fiona.

"I am not going to drop out of this! No matter what you do, I refuse to do so. What, are you afraid of a little bit of competition? Afraid that you could possibly lose to me?" Fiona yelled letting her anger get the best of her. She hated how Amy was always making accusations about her with no proof. But to say that she had to fuck the entire school to get this honor was going way too far.

That really struck a nerve in Amy. Before Fiona could react, she punched her hard across the face leaving a large red mark in its place. She smirked at her success but it faded when she saw a teacher standing behind Fiona. 'Oh great,' she thought when she saw that it wasn't Prozen.

"What exactly is going on here?" their teacher Rob Herman asked seeing the scene that was unfolding. Beside him stood Dr. D and he was looking at the scene with great displeasure. He had seen the whole thing and wished that he could have stopped it sooner but it all happened before he could react.

Fiona didn't answer but straightened up and touched her face. She cringed when she touched the sensitive skin. She wanted to hit Amy back so badly but she wasn't going to stoop to the other woman's level to do so. Amy would get what was coming to her because of what she did.

I believe that I can answer that Rob. I saw the whole thing but was unable to react fast enough. I should have been able to stop it from happening though," Dr. D said stepping forward. "Everyone here can tell you that Amy was the only one to actually hit. All Fiona did was said a few words in her own defense because of Miss Jewel's insults," Dr. D said honestly.

"That isn't true!" Amy said trying to do what she can to get out of trouble. She suddenly smiled when she saw Prozen walking towards them. She knew she would be able to get out of it now that he was here.

Prozen saw the crowd and two teachers and walked towards it. "What is going on here?" Prozen asked stepping forward causing several students to scurry away in fear that they would get in trouble. He looked over the scene before him. "Getting in trouble again Lynette?" he asked with a sneer on his face.

"Actually it is Miss Jewel that is in trouble here. Several students have even testified to what actually happened around here," Herman said turning to face Prozen. He hated the man and didn't understand how he was allowed to keep his jobs. His teaching methods weren't all that good.

"I am sure that it must have been on account of something that Miss Lynette did," Prozen said and Amy nodded her head wildly. "I will take care of it all," he said walking towards the two girls but he was stopped by Herman.

"Miss Lynette can't be punished since she hasn't done anything. Miss Jewel has deliberately struck another student and will be punished based on the school rules," Herman said being the main voice of reason in the school. He would make sure that all rules were fairly enforced, making no exceptions for anyone.

"I don't think that that is necessary Herman. If I remember right, Miss Lynette also struck Miss Jewel once and got away without any sort of punishment," Prozen said watching Fiona cringe at the memory of that moment.

"Yes she did, but only after Miss Jewel humiliated her in front of the entire school. She really can't be blamed for her actions. This is a different situation and will be dealt with fairly," Herman said before turning to Dr. D. "Will you please escort Miss Lynette to the nurse's office? She should get some ice for her cheek," he said calmly.

"Of course I will," Dr. D said with a smile as he walked over towards Fiona. "Come Fiona, let's go and gets something for you cheek," he said leading the way and Fiona followed after him.

"Is this really necessary Herman?" Prozen asked turning his glare towards Herman who didn't even flinch under it. He was one of the few people that wasn't afraid of what Prozen would do to him.

"Yes, it is," Herman said calmly as he walked over to Amy. "Come, I need to take you to the office to sort out your punishment," Herman said walking a different way than Dr. D with a very reluctant Amy following closely behind him.

* * *

Van knew that he would be free for at least a little while. Amy had gotten two days of detention for the stunt she pulled, which was a good thing because she was going dress shopping and was going to drag him along. She was way too picky and he knew that it would take hours if they did. 

He felt that this would be a good opportunity to hang out with Fiona. He was so busy through the weekend that he hadn't really spent much time with her even when she was around. He felt bad for that.

The thing is that he would have hung out with Fiona but by the time that he had gotten to her house, she was already gone. Apparently Moonbay had dragged the two of them out in search of dresses much like Amy had planned to do with him. He would much rather go with Fiona though.

That was exactly where he had gone after that. He had nothing to do and he figured he could find some way to hang around her without being very suspicious. He knew that Moonbay would drag Irvine there as well for a male opinion and he knew that was the best way to go about it.

By that time of the day, the mall was crowded and hard to navigate through all of the people that were there. He knew it would be pointless to look for them so he just walked around aimlessly and hoped that he would be lucky enough to see them on the way.

Van made a stop at a store he had been meaning to go to. His father had given him quite a bit of money so he could get some things that he wanted for the gaming room or his room. This place happened to have one of the things that he wanted most so he went in.

He didn't waste much time in going and buying this gaming system he had wanted for a while. "This is a great start," he said looking through the games and trying to find a game of interest to him.

A voice hit his ears and he straightened up quickly and looked out the window to see Fiona, Moonbay, and as he suspected, Irvine walking by. Irvine already had several bags in his arms but he knew that Moonbay and Fiona had yet to get what they originally came here for.

Something caught Fiona's eye in the store that they were passing. She smiled broadly when she saw Van standing there. She had a feeling that he came here looking for her. "Hey Moonbay which store are we going to go to next?" Fiona asked causing Irvine and Moonbay to stop and stare at her.

They could have sworn that they had already told her. They noticed her nudging her head to the side and the looking in the direction and knew why she was asking such a thing. "I have a cousin who owns a dress shop here. She was planning to close earlier but is letting us use the shop while she is gone," Moonbay said as she grabbed Irvine's and arm walked towards a store that was in view of the shop Van was in.

When they reached the store, Fiona immediately went and started to look around as Moonbay walked towards her cousin who was preparing to leave. She spoke a few words to the woman and then the other woman left the store.

After about another five minutes, Van showed up since Moonbay had told her cousin to let him into the store before she left. 'It is more like a chore to come to these stores with Amy but I am going to be able to have a lot more fun with Fiona instead,' he thought with a grin as he looked Fiona over.

"Hey Van," Fiona said happily walking over and giving him a kiss since no one else was able to get into the store or even look into it since all of the doors were closed. Moonbay was the only one that could let anyone in or out at that moment.

"Hey to you too," he said kissing her deeply on the lips while both Irvine and Moonbay looked away. "Sorry about earlier. I did what I could to stop her but she was a little too mad then," he said with an apologetic smile even though he knew that it wasn't his fault. "By the way, congratulations on your nomination," he said kissing her again.

"Thanks Van. I wonder if I will be able to win it though," she said halfheartedly. She sighed in contentment when Van kissed her forehead. He always knew how to make her happy when she was feeling down.

"I personally think that you are the best choice for it. You will definitely be getting my vote even if I am going to prom with your competition. I think you can beat even her though,' Van said giving her a smile as he held her close to him.

"Are the two of you going to make out all day? Fiona and I have some dress searching to do," Moonbay said watching the loving couple. She was envious of them and wished that Irvine would shower her with that much affection instead of what they have right then.

Van let go of Fiona and stepped back but he kept a hold of her hand. "Sure thing," he said as Moonbay walked away. "Are you to give me a little show for this?" he asked Fiona with a seductive smile.

"Sure thing, doesn't mean that I am going to get any of these though, I am just looking around for now. You will just have to wait till prom to see what I am wearing," she said placing her hands on his chest. She went in for another quick kiss before she ran off into the many aisles of clothes.

"You've got it pretty bad for her," Irvine pointed out as he stepped up and stood next to Van. He saw Van nod his head as if he was proud of it. "You can't keep her waiting Van. The longer that you keep this going, then there is a better chance of someone finding out. It could ruin both you and Fiona," Irvine said as they took a seat near the dressing rooms even though Fiona and Moonbay were still looking for dresses to try on.

"That is one of my biggest fears Irvine. In the short time that we have been together, Fiona has dug herself deep into my heart. So deep that it will never let the love go. I am afraid that someone will come that will give her what she deserves and that she would leave me," Van said in a shaky voice while rubbing his head.

"Fiona isn't going to leave you unless you give her a reason to. She wants to be with you and only you. Yet if you don't find a solution to your problem soon, she will grow tired of the secrecy," Irvine said looking at the two excited ladies.

"I am already trying to find some way to get Hiltz to release his hold on me. I just can't take all of this lying anymore. Fiona is more important to me than anything and I will make sure that I never let her go. Nothing will stand between us when I am a free man," Van said with a small smile.

"You tried that before remember?" Irvine asked and Van just nodded his head. "I hope that you succeed this time. Hiltz will make things a lot worse if he finds out so make sure that you don't do anything stupid. You have a tendency to do that," Irvine said with a chuckle.

"When did I do anything stupid?" Van asked and Irvine just gave him a do-you-really-want-me-to-tell-you look. "I was young and lonely then so get off my case. I wouldn't have considered it if I had known that Fiona would be coming here four months after that," Van said knowing what Irvine was getting at now.

"We all make mistakes but you are suffering from yours. Just do what you can. I am going to help you in anyway that I can. It hurts me as well to see Fiona sad at the situation that the two of you are in. she doesn't show it but she is hurt by it as well," Irvine said and Van nodded his head in agreement.

Fiona and Moonbay came running up to them with several dresses in their arms. "Hey there you two. Just wait right here," Fiona said before eh and Moonbay walked into separate dressing rooms.

Van was getting a little eager. He had taken a look at some of the dresses he saw that Fiona had and was trying to picture her in some of them. His mind was giving a bit of dirty thoughts though. He shook them off and turned his attention back to the rooms as he waited for the love of his life to come out.

Moonbay was the first one to come out of the dressing room. She was wearing a black dress that only reached to about her knees. It was spaghetti strapped and clung to her figure nicely. Irvine just couldn't help but whistle in approval. "Nice," he said looking her up and down.

Moonbay grinned and went back into the dressing room just as Fiona came out of her own. Her dress was pink and went all the way down to her ankles. There were glittering effects all over it. Like Moonbay's it had spaghetti straps.

Van couldn't help but grin. It seemed to fit Fiona perfectly. It outlined her beauty gave her a look that fit her innocence. Van's mouth kept opening and closing like that of a fish since he was unsure what it was that he could say.

Fiona giggled at Van's expression. She knew he liked it so there was no reason to ask him what he thought of it. She walked into the dressing room and closed and locked the door, or at least she thought that she did.

Van looked around the room before he looked back and he noticed that Fiona's door wasn't completely closed. 'Don't do it, don't do it,' his mind warned him but his eyes had a mind of their own. They couldn't peel them away from the sight that was before him.

Luckily for Van, Irvine was in a position so that he wouldn't be able to see what he was seeing. There was Fiona slipping the dress off of her exquisite form. He nearly had a nosebleed when he saw that she wasn't wearing a bra underneath. He knew that it wouldn't look too good with the shirt she was wearing earlier because it showed a lot of her back.

Her form was nothing less than perfection. Van had this urge to just go in there and join her but he held himself back to the best of his abilities. "Um… Fiona?' he asked and saw her turned her head towards the door before blushing profusely before quickly closing the door completely.

Van knew that those images would fill a lot of dreams for the next few nights. Amy may have intentionally showed him and Fiona was on accident but Fiona had this much more natural beauty to Amy. Fiona had completely flawless skin. He also knew that he wouldn't be able to get that image out of his head no matter how hard he tried.

Moonbay came out of the changing room a few minutes later and Fiona came out about the same time. She noticed that Van and Fiona were both blushing and trying to look other places but their eyes always found each others and they blushed even more. "What's with you two?" she asked because they weren't like this all that long ago.

Van and Fiona blushed even harder than before. "Nothing," the two of them said in unison. They tried to act casually but Van couldn't get his mind off the image and Fiona couldn't get over the fact that Van saw her topless.

"Right," Moonbay said in a tone that told them that she didn't believe it at all. "Come on Fiona. Let's get changed. We have a movie to get to soon," she said since it was part of their original plan there. Plus it was dark so Van and Fiona could have a little bit of time to themselves.

* * *

They may have come in separately but they all ended up in the back of the theater. It was crowded by the time that they got there so no one paid much attention to them when they first came in. There also didn't appear to be anyone else that they knew here either. 

Van eyes scanned the audience for about the fiftieth time before the movie even started. He couldn't see anyone that he or Amy knew. He smiled at the thought because it made him freer to do what he wanted.

Van sighed as she watched the previews to the movie. She suddenly felt an arm wrap around her shoulders and laid her head on Van's shoulders. She may have been embarrassed about earlier but she didn't love him any less than she did before they came to the mall.

Just as the movie started, Van saw someone come into the theater and his eyes widened. He quickly got out of his seat and snuck to the back door before any of his friends could figure out what happened. He didn't have to be afraid but this person had a bit of a big mouth.

"Fiona!" Thomas said happily when he spotted Fiona in the back of the theater. A lot of people tried to quiet him down and he blushed before running towards the back of the theater and took the seat that Van had occupied only a few moments prior. He didn't even see Van there in the first place.

Fiona groaned when she saw him take Van's spot. She now understood why it was that Van rushed out of there a moment before. He didn't want to get caught and Thomas always seemed to have this sense of knowing where she was. "Hello Thomas," she said quietly as she sunk into her seat as everyone in the theater looked at them because of how loud Thomas was being.

"Imagine seeing you here Fiona. It must be fate. Care if I join you?" he asked excitedly but he didn't wait for a reply before he got comfortable in the seat that was supposed to be for Van.

Fiona saddened since her moment with Van was lost very quickly. She had thought they would be able to spend some time together. Sure they wouldn't be able to talk to each other in the movie theater but being able to hold each other was enough for her.

Fiona turned to Irvine and Moonbay. "On second thought, I don't feel like watching this," she said as she stood up and walked out of the theater. It wasn't that she hated Thomas but she wanted to spend some time with Van. She knew he couldn't have gotten far or knew that she would follow him after that.

Irvine and Moonbay just nodded their heads from what Thomas saw. He didn't know why she had run off all of a sudden. He thought it would be a good time for them to spend together. He knew prom was his big chance to impress her but he wanted to get her for his girlfriend before then.

"Fiona wait!" he yelled earning glares from the audience again before he got up and ran after her much to everyone's relief because they could watch the movie in peace. He ran out of the theater and by the time that he got there he saw that Fiona was already gone. He didn't know how she could have gotten away so quickly. "Where'd she go?" he asked himself as he walked around aimlessly.

* * *

Van sighed and leaned back in the seat of his car. He thought they would spend time together uninterrupted but he should have known that nothing is as easy as it seems. Thomas would have seen him with Fiona if he hadn't gotten out of their quickly. The guy had too big of a mouth. 

He turned on the car and was about to pull out of his parking space when the door to his car opened and Fiona got in and sat down without a word. "Fiona? Why aren't you watching the movie?" he asked her looking at her curiously.

"I wanted to watch the movie with you but since you had to leave, I figured that I would do so as well. It wouldn't be right to watch it with Thomas and not you," she said with a smile as she buckled her seatbelt.

Van couldn't help but grin. He had the best girlfriend around. Amy would stay and watch as he left but Fiona left with him. He didn't know what he had done to deserve such a wonderful woman. "Ok then, hang on," he said quickly pulling out of the parking space and drove away before they could be seen by anyone.

"So where to now? I don't think we can go back to watch the movie now without being caught," Fiona said as she looked out the window and then towards Van. "How about we just go back to yours or my house so that we can pop in a movie or something such as that?" Fiona asked with a smile.

Van looked towards the sky and saw that the sun was already starting to set. "No, I have a better idea than that. Why don't we just go and grab a bite to eat and then there is some place that I want to take you," he said with a smile although he didn't even look over at Fiona once.

Fiona was very curious as to where this secret place was but she didn't ask any question because she had a feeling that Van wanted this place to be a surprise. It didn't stop her from wondering what it was though.

They made a quick stop at a fast food restaurant because Van looked like he was in a bit of a hurry. They just grabbed a few burgers and were off at once. Fiona ate her in the car but Van didn't because he was driving. This was all done in silence.

They drove for about fifteen minutes and Fiona could have sworn that they left the town. Now she was more curious than ever and couldn't help but release the question that was on her mind. "Where are we going Van?" she asked looking at the beautiful surroundings around her that were basking in the light of the sunset.

Van drove up a small hill and then came to a stop. "You're lucky Fiona. I have never showed anyone this place. It was something that only my family knows about," he said getting out of the car and opening her door for her.

Fiona looked at her surroundings. The sun was setting in the horizon and the entire scene was a lot like when Van and her had first kissed. She figured that maybe Van had that in mind even though that was during sunrise and this is sunset.

"I have wanted to show you this place for a while. I haven't been here in years and I wanted you to come with me," Van said turning off his cell so that they wouldn't be disturbed like they were when they were in theater. He didn't want the moment to be ruined.

"This place is beautiful. Reminds me of the first time we kissed," she said with a smile before she kissed Van just to make her point. "Sunset are beautiful aren't they?" Fiona asked as she stared at it.

Van suddenly remembered then. It wasn't that he forgot about it, it is just that he wasn't thinking about it when he decided to bring Fiona here. "They sure are. I wouldn't say that are as beautiful as you are though," he said making her blush out of modesty. He always found that part of her to be so cute.

Later the two of them got back into the car and drove back to town. Fiona sighed in content and closed her eyes. "We will be like this always, right Van?" she couldn't help but ask. She felt his arm around her shoulder and then felt him kiss her forehead before he returned his hands to the steering wheel.

"No it won't," he said quietly making her look up at him. "Things will get better eventually. We won't have all this secrecy and have to hide what we truly feel from others. I know you don't want to go through all of that but can you give me a little time?" he asked her and this time she kissed him on the cheek.

"I will give you all the time in the world Van," she said and then it was quiet after that all the way back to his house. It was a silence so comfortable. They didn't always need words to tell each other how they were feeling. It had been that way for a while. Ever since they had fallen in love and even before then.

"So Fiona, how about that movie, I will even give you a choice of what to watch," he said just before the phone rang. "Just a minute," he said with a smile before he walked away and towards the phone.

Fiona just shrugged and walked towards the case that held several movies. All of them sounded interesting to watch. She grabbed one before she suddenly heard a bit of a crashing sound. She got worried and ran towards the source of the noise.

She ran into the room to find Van standing there with an extremely pale look on his face. There was a shattered vase on the floor because he accidentally ran into the table that it was on. She knew that wasn't the problem. His hands had fallen to his side and he was shaking a lot. The phone lay forgotten on the floor but it was still turned on.

She could hear a voice coming from the phone. It sounded like Van's father on the other side of the phone. "Van… Van! Did you hear me Van? I said your mother is in the hospital!" his panicked father was heard saying over the phone.

* * *

wow, i didn't expect to get all those reviews so quickl;y but i am a man of my word. Thanks for all the wonderful reviews. Just remember that the more reviews i get, the faster chapters will come out.


	20. sickness

Van and Fiona came rushing into the hospital. Fiona was the one who had to drive because Van really didn't look too good after hearing the news of his mother. Fiona felt awful about it as well but she knew that Van was a lot closer to his mother than she would ever be.

Van rushed to the counter before Fiona was even able to take a step into the hospital. "Excuse me; I am looking for Julie Flyheight! She was admitted earlier in the day!" Van said with a voice of urgency. He had never really been as scared as he was now before that night.

The receptionist looked up from her magazine with an annoyed look. She hated getting the night shift. "Are you a relative of hers?" the woman asked. She appeared to be only in her mid thirties and had a look like she had been through way too much to really care.

"Yes, I am her son. Now can you please tell me where she is?" Van practically begged as the woman turned towards the computer and started to type on it as Van bounced around. He calmed down a little when Fiona walked up to his side and took his hand in her own.

The woman just shook her head and picked her magazine back up. "Second floor, go down the hall and take a right. It is room 234," she said before getting back to her magazine meaning that the conversation was over.

Van just walked in the direction that she had said. "Shouldn't they have people that are a little more social at the hospital? She sure doesn't make people feel too good," he said clutching Fiona's hand a little tighter in his own.

Fiona shook her head slightly knowing it was Van's attempt to get his mind off of the situation at hand. She hated to ruin that for him but she knew that she had to. "Let's not get into that Van. Let's just find your mother and make sure that she is alright," Fiona said quietly and then just walked on in silence.

They took the direction they were given and found themselves in front of the room that his mother was said to be in. Van could only just stood there and looked at the door. He was nervous about what he would see if he entered the room. How bad his mother actually was.

Fiona saw Van's hesitation and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I am sure that everything is going to be fine Van. Let's just go in there and see her. I am sure seeing you will help her feel a lot better," she said in a quiet tone although she knew exactly what it was that he was feeling.

Van took a deep breath and grabbed the handle to the door and turned it before pushing it open. He then walked in quickly and saw tha his father was already by her side with a tight hold of her hand. "How is she?" Van asked sadly.

Dan Flyheight let off a sigh but didn't let go of her hand. "She is completely exhausted. Her illness is just making it even worse for her. I should have seen this coming. Why didn't she heed our warnings to rest up more?" Dan asked staring deep into his wife's face.

Van sighed as well and stared at her. She had a breathing mask on and was extremely pale right then. It made him worried that she might not be ok. "Is she going to be ok?" Van asked taking a seat on the other side of his mother.

Dan winced at the question but he knew that his son deserved to know the truth. "I honestly don't know what is going to happen. They say she is in pretty bad shape now. It will all come down to what happens in the next few days," he said and if Van was looking, he would have seen a small tear fall down his father's face.

Van took her other hand in his own hands. "Come on mom. Please don't leave us," Van said feeling tears of his own that he had been holding onto ever since he first heard the news of his mother. It was all just becoming far too much for him to take.

Fiona watched the father and son crying over Julie. She sort of felt left out. She cared for her a lot but she didn't have the sort of relationship that the two of them had with her. They were her family and she was just someone that was there at that moment. She slowly stepped out of the room without alerting the two men or so she thought.

Dan saw Fiona leave but just ignored it thinking that she was just going to get something to eat or maybe to use the restroom. He returned his gaze to his wife and tightened his grip on her hand. He would make sure that nothing was going to happen to her.

"Mom, you have to be alright. Dad, Fiona, and I are all here for you. I even made it quick call to Maria so she should be coming back as soon as she can. Please just stay with us," Van said shaking with suppressed tears.

"Don't worry about her Van. She is a lot stronger than we give her credit for. I am sure that she will be alright eventually. Let's just hope that she will have the strength needed in herself to pull through this. I am sure that she wouldn't leave this world for a while," he said although he too was very scared that they would end up losing her as well.

This was the type of reason that Van stuck with Hiltz's blackmail. He didn't want to see her in this position because of some stupid decisions that he would make. He wished for a way to get out without putting her in this sort of situation again. yet the more he thought of it, the more hopeless it seemed.

Dan looked up a few minutes later and noticed that Fiona still had not returned to the room. He thought that she would have been back by now from whatever it was that she was doing. "Van, do you know where Fiona went? She left a while ago but hasn't returned," Dan said making his son look up at him.

"No," Van said wiping his tears away as he turned around to see that she was gone. "I hope that she didn't leave," he said standing up and looking out into the halls but he didn't see any sign of her. He wouldn't be able to take it if something was to happen to her while he wasn't there.

"Why don't you go and look for her. I wouldn't want her to be in here as well," he said pushing Van forward. "Please, you mother would have wanted to make sure that she is alright. I promise that I will call you if there is any sort of change in her condition," Dan said and Van nodded before running off.

Van ran around the hospital and got scolded several times. The only information by those that actually saw Fiona was that she had walked out of the hospital. He dreaded that answer and ran out and got into his car driving away quickly.

Van didn't know what Fiona was thinking because her home wasn't exactly close to the hospital. She should have mentioned something instead of doing that. Despite his mother being in there, at least she was protected with doctors and his father. Fiona wouldn't be if she left by herself.

He knew that she wouldn't be able to get too far if she was to go out by herself so he just drove around the area. He swore that he would have to tie a bell around her soon or else he wouldn't be able to find her.

* * *

Fiona was just walking around the area around the hospital. She wanted to give Van and his father a little time alone with her. They were family and she wasn't so it only made sense. She wished she was but she figured that at the rate things were going that she would never really be with Van.

Fiona suddenly felt as if something was following her. Not even thinking that it was Van coming to look for her, she sped up hoping to ditch whoever it was and hope that it wasn't anyone with any ill intentions in mind. The thought of that night she became friend with Van came to mind and she suddenly panicked.

She started to run but the car kept following. It pulled up beside her and she noticed that it was only Van's car. She breathed a sigh of relief as she slowed down and came to a stop. "Oh, it's just you Van," she said with small smile.

"Yeah," Van said in a voice that obviously lacked any emotions. "Come on, I am going to take you home. It is getting late and I am sure that your mother is worried about you," he said in a tired voice. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. He was so tired from worry for his mother and Fiona.

Fiona saw how tired Van looked and frowned. "Why don't you let me drive Van? You should get some rest," she said in a worried tone and he just nodded and moved into the passenger's seat as she took the drivers seat and started to drive down the road. "Do you want me to take you back to the hospital?" she asked him but he just shook his head. "Home?" she asked next and he just nodded.

Van held no emotion except sadness right then. Fiona hated to see him like that and wished that there was something that she could do for him. Nothing came to mind for her and she just frowned.

About twenty minutes later they found themselves in front of his house and Van didn't seem to make any movement to indicate that he was going to get out. He just stared out the window with dull eyes.

"Come on Van," Fiona said getting out and helping him out of the car. Giving him a little support, because he just seemed to lack the energy for anything right then, Fiona walked him into the house and up to his room. "Are you going to be alright Van?" Fiona asked but received no reply. She sighed and turned around to leave when her arm was grabbed and she was pulled onto Van's lap.

"Please don't leave me Fiona," Van whispered into her hair as he kissed the top of her head. "I was scared that something might happen to you as well. I don't want anyone else I care about to get hurt," he said holding onto her tightly.

Fiona nodded her head. She also knew that if she didn't want to, which she did, that he would just keep her there anyways. She didn't want to leave him though. "It will be ok Van. I am sure that she will be fine," Fiona said kissing his cheek and burying her head into his shoulder.

Van laid them both down and pulled her deep into his embrace. Her fragrant scent filled his nose and helped to relax him. He saw her staring at him and looked deep into her crimson orbs. He leaned his head down and caught her lips with his own. It was sweet, and sensual, but it seemed to lack something that it usually had.

Fiona was shocked by this but melted into the kiss. It brought peace to her mind and heart from the events of the day. She was slightly aware of a change of position between the two of them but didn't bother to mention anything about it.

She felt Van laid light kisses upon her lips and then travel down so he was kissing her neck. She knew what they were doing just wasn't right but she couldn't seem to stop herself from enjoying the feelings that Van was putting on her. "Van," she moaned slightly.

Van hands circled around her waist and went slightly under her shirt so that they were lying upon the smooth skin of her back. Fiona suddenly put her hands to his chest and pushed him off of her while sitting up in the process. He looked at her confused for a moment.

"Van, I'm sorry but I can't do this. It just isn't right. You mother is in the hospital and I wouldn't feel good about it if we did do that while she was there," Fiona said and she just saw him nod and then she gasped when she saw him shaking very hard. "Van?" she asked and saw a tear role down his face.

Van's body shook with his grief and he felt himself pulled into Fiona's embrace. "I just can't take it anymore Fiona," she said looking into her eyes with his tear stained ones. "I want us to be happy but I know I can't if it will put my mother in anymore danger," he said laying his head down upon Fiona's lap.

"I know," was all that Fiona could say. She just hoped things wouldn't get too out of control. She didn't think she could go on with her life if she didn't have Van by her side. Everything would just not have any meaning left in it.

"You are the one thing that is helping me keep my sanity nowadays and I don't know what I would do if I would lose you like I might lose my mother," Van said as Fiona lightly stroked her fingers across his cheek.

"I am here and your mother will be fine Van," Fiona said stroking his face lightly as she held back her own tears. She wanted to be strong for Van but it was so hard when she saw him in that state. She just wished for something that she could do to help him get through this.

* * *

Moonbay and Irvine looked around waiting for the arrival of their friend but they were surprised when they saw no sign of Van and Fiona. They were worried or at least coming up with very amusing reasons as to why the two of them weren't there. Usually Fiona was one of the first ones to school each day.

"They probably just decided to ditch so they could have some more time together," Irvine said seeing it as a reasonable excuse since Amy was always keeping Van's time occupied as much as she could for a while. It was getting rather sickening to see for them.

"Whatever it is, I am assuming that the two of them are together since they are both out of school the same day," Moonbay said with a sigh wishing that her friends had mentioned it to her first.

The two of them walked into class just as the bell rang and groaned seeing that Amy was there but she was also confused when she didn't see Van or he enemy Fiona in the class. She didn't see it as anything but a coincidence thought and assumed that Van was sick.

Dr. D walked into the room and looked around at the students assessing who was there and who wasn't there. "Well it look like all but two are here today. One of them being no surprise," he said sitting behind his desk and pulling out his drawer and started to rummage through them as the rest of the class started talking amongst themselves while waiting for the bell.

Irvine got up from his seat and walked to Dr. D. "Hey old man, do you know the reason that the two of them aren't here," Irvine said since it wouldn't seem so suspicious since he was clear friends with both of them to everyone's eyes.

Dr. D looked up at Irvine and sighed. "Van's father called taking him out of school for the day due to a family emergency. He wasn't specific about it though. I assume Fiona is with him," he whispered the last part silently so only Irvine knew. He saw Irvine's stunned face and laughed. "I am old but these eyes of mine see more than that of you young one," he said getting back to the papers before him.

Irvine walked back to his desk thinking it over. He was worried for the two of them now. To make Fiona miss class meant that something serious must have happened to Van. He would have to go and make sure that they were alright when he got out of school.

* * *

Fiona's eyes opened slowly and she slowly registered that her back hurt from sitting up the entire night and that Van was still lying on her lap. She didn't care about school. She just wanted to make sure that he would be ok no matter what the outcome of this would be.

She knew she had to get home to talk to her mother though. she was supposed to home at a specific time because of something her mother had planned but she never even called her mother.

She slowly got out of the bed so as to not wake Van. After making sure that he was still sleeping, she got one of her spare set of clothes from the room set up for her and got changed quickly before heading out the door. Her house wasn't too far from there so Fiona knew that she didn't have to worry about driving the previous night.

She was walking into her house about fifteen minutes later and was immediately confronted by her mad mother. "Where were you young lady? You were supposed to be home by nine last night. You could have at least called or something. Why exactly aren't you in school?" she asked showing how obviously worried she had been for Fiona through the night.

"I'm sorry mother. Things were really bad last night. Van's mother was admitted into the hospital. I guess I just couldn't leave Van by himself with his grief. I'm sorry for not calling. It was the last thing on my mind," Fiona said looking towards the floor.

Her mother gasped as a hand went to her mouth. "Poor Julie. I hope she will be alright," she said since the two women were really good friends since their children were as well. "Go get cleaned up. I guess I can't blame you for just wanting to help Van," she said with a sigh as she walked into a different room.

Fiona sighed in relief that she wasn't going to be punished for this. She went up to her room and took a quick look at the clock. Seeing that it was nearly twelve by then, she figure that there was no reason for her to go to school. She just lied down and decided to take a little nap.

* * *

Van's eyes opened and he looked around the room. Unfortunately, the events of the previous night came back to him quickly. He didn't like how Fiona wasn't there right now but he figured that she just went home to clear things up with her mother. He hoped she would return later that night though.

He looked towards his clock and was surprised to see that it was already five in the afternoon by then. "Man, I slept the entire day away," he said with a laugh but it held no meaning to it. He was basically just a shell of his former self at that moment.

The thought of it all seemed to bring back the tears from the previous night. He wiped them away quickly when he heard the door to his room open. Hoping it was Fiona, he tuned around but only saw Amy standing there is a disappointed look upon her face. He just hoped she wouldn't yell at him.

"So this is where you have been all day. I have been really worried about you since I didn't see you come to school today. By the looks of it, you just woke up," she said indicating his disheveled hair.

"Can you please just leave me alone for now," Van asked softly. Not to be mean but he just wanted to be by himself or at least have Fiona with him. "I am going through a really hard time and I just want to rest some more," he said lying down upon the bed.

"What's wrong Van? You look absolutely horrible," she said taking a seat on the bed next to his still tired body. She rubbed his arm a little as a means of comfort but to Van it was more of trying to feel him up.

"Please just leave me alone," he repeated shrugging off her hold. "My mother is in the hospital and I just want to be alone for a while," he said turning over to face away from her. He wanted to be with Fiona right then, not her.

"Oh come on Van. Don't say that. Listen, I know of a great way to help you forget all about your problems," she said as one of her hands traveled around him and up into his shirt. The other went down and grabbed his nuts.

Van threw her off of him quickly with an extremely pissed off look on his face. "My mother is in the hospital and all you can think of is sex? What is wrong with you?" he yelled although he knew him and Fiona were in that situation the previous night. He was glad that Fiona stopped it though.

"Don't start yelling at me for your problems! I was only trying to help you help you forget your problems!" Amy yelled back before storming out of the room. "I swear there has to be something wrong with you!" her retreating form yelled at him.

"None as much as you!" Van yelled but he just couldn't help it. It was becoming way too hard to remain with her. He would have broken up with her very quickly if he was free to do so. Hiltz just wouldn't let him off but that didn't mean that he wouldn't try.

Amy stormed down the stairs of the house in her anger. She just couldn't figure out why he just didn't go with her. "Isn't that what every guy wants?" she asked herself as she stormed into her car and slammed the door shut.

She looked up towards the window that was Van's but didn't see him anywhere inside. 'Obviously he is losing interest. Too bad for him, he will be mine forever! I made sure of that long ago!' she thought angrily before speeding her way out of the driveway. She figured that she would just give him some time to cool down.

Van looked out the window just in time to see Amy speeding away from the house. He couldn't figure out what it was that was with her. She seemed to want to remain attached to him constantly. It was really starting to wear down his nerves but he just couldn't do anything about it.

Van groaned as he took a seat in front of his desk and was about to get on before he had second thoughts and decided to just get more rest. He was about to lie down for another nap but the phone suddenly rang and he picked it up. He let off a loud yawn before he answered the phone with a tired, "Yes?"

"Oh hey Van," Irvine's voice said over the phone. "We heard you were out of school today for a family emergency and we just wanted to make sure that everything will be alright," Irvine said and if Van heard right, he could hear Moonbay whispering something in the background.

"I'm not sure. My mother is in the hospital. It's bad this time as well. I'm just so scared that something is going to happen to her," Van said sitting down on his bed while rubbing his head. He was so scared and wished Fiona was there. She was always able to comfort him with the smallest touch.

Van could hear a struggle on the other side of the phone. Most likely it was Moonbay trying to grab the phone away from Irvine. Van couldn't help but laugh at the behavior the two of them had around each other.

Seconds later, as expected, Moonbay answered the phone. "I'm sorry to hear about that Van. Maybe we will go and see her sometime. If not, be sure to give her our best regards," Moonbay said in a sad tone that was so unlike her normal self.

"Thanks, I will be sure to tell her that when she wakes up," Van said before he heard the dial tone on the other side of his side of the line. He slowly hung up the phone and fell onto his back on the bed. 'If she wakes up,' he thought negatively as he buried his head into his pillow.

He wasn't even aware that someone had come into the room until he felt their light weight pressing against the bed and a comforting hand on his shoulder. He didn't even have to be told who it was to know that Fiona had finally come back. "Hey Fiona," he said quietly and turned over meeting her smiling face.

"How did you know it was me? What if it was Amy? You would have just blown our cover if it actually was," Fiona said but knew that he had this strange sense that it was her. They could always seem to tell when the other was around.

"I knew it was you because she wouldn't even think before jumping into bed with me. Plus that and she just left in a rage about ten minutes ago," he said gathering Fiona into his arms and pulling her down so she was lying right next to him. "I was disappointed when I didn't see you here when I woke up," he said kissing her forehead.

"I'm sorry about that. I needed to go home and talk to my mother. She wanted me home last night but after I explained the situation, she understood very well," she said resting her head on his shoulder. She felt so comfortable in that position and wished she could stay like that forever.

"Sorry if I caused any trouble beforehand," Van said but she just shook her head and with a content sigh she relaxed against him. Van looked over and saw that she had a bag with her. "Planning to stay?" he asked actually feeling a bit happy since he learned of his mother's condition.

"Both my mother and your father thought it would be a good idea. This place is too big for one person to stay in by himself. Plus it gives me a little more time to be with you," she said with a smile and sighed in content at the feel of the light kisses he was placing on her.

"I like there logic," he said holding her a little tighter to him. "I am going to go and check on her condition later. Do you want to come with me?" Van asked and she nodded her head. "But please, no running off by yourself this time," he said a little teasingly.

"I won't," she said as they both got up but never let go of one another. They quickly gout out to the car and were driving to the hospital. Both hoping that there had been some sort of change in his mother's condition.

* * *

That had been the way it had been for the past week. Nothing very big in change in her condition. Three days there and the doctors were sure that she was out of any danger zones but she had yet to wake up from the deep sleep she had been in since she was first brought in. That still worried Van that it could take a turn for the worse.

Van's father had tried to make a joke about it to lighten the mood saying that her sleeping like that was, "Nothing new. She loves to sleep worse than you do Van," Van remembered him saying after hearing that Van had slept past five the day after she was admitted to the hospital.

About three days after that, Maria had returned. It was good to have the entire family there. That was only yesterday as well. Her arrival made Van happy because he had been moping around the house most of the time.

Having Fiona there definitely helped. She stayed with him all that week. She unfortunately had to go back to school the second day after Julie's admittance to the hospital. It was an agreement between the two of them so as to not draw any suspicion to the two of them.

Van himself hadn't gone to school all week until the day before then, after he was sure that his mother would be fine. No one suspected that him and Fiona were together in all that time. For that he was grateful because he didn't need that type of stress of keeping them quiet right then.

Amy had calmed down greatly from the events of earlier that week. So much so that he couldn't get away very often. He was glad then that he only had two classes with her or else he would never be able to have any time to himself. Well, not himself. Any time with Fiona.

Today was Saturday and Van found himself alone. Moonbay had dragged Fiona off to search for prom dresses. Maria had decided to go along with them to help them make the best decisions. She was always good when it came to decision making.

Van didn't really mind that they were gone. Fiona said that if she bought a dress that he would be the first one to see it. That filled him with pride knowing that not even her date would be able to see it until the night of the prom.

The mere thought of that still ticked Van off to no end. He knew he shouldn't feel threatened that Thomas was taking her but he still hated the thought of that loser dancing with Fiona, and being able to get close enough to do so. He just wished that he could be the one to take her.

Amy had already gotten her dress and was bragging all about it. He didn't feel like hearing about it because he didn't really want to go with her. Yet he was stuck and she would be his date no matter what he did.

Van was just staring up at the ceiling wishing that there was something that he could do since everyone was gone. He was about to just go and take a shower or something when he heard his phone ring. Seeing as the kitchen had the closest phone, he quickly rushed to it and picked it up. "Hello?" Van asked hoping that it was Fiona saying she found a dress. He really wanted to see what it would look like.

What greeted him was the sound of silence. A very bad feeling came over Van. "Hello?" he said fearing that it was his father calling to tell him some bad news about his father. "Hello!" Van said growing frustrated.

"Van, it's me," his father said on the other side of the line. His voice sounded just like it did that night he called before and Van was stricken with panic again. "You're mother woke up a short time ago," he said and Van got his hopes up but it was shot down very quickly with the next part of his statement. "Unfortunately she had another attack and had to be rushed into the emergency room again," he said in a regretful tone.

'No, not again,' Van dropping the phone. He suddenly found himself growing weak and took a seat in a chair. His hands were shaking as he stared at the phone which had already gone dead on the other line.

He heard the door to the house open and three laughing female voices were heard but Van couldn't respond to them. The three walked into the kitchen holding several bags. They were still laughing up until they saw the state that Van was in.

Fiona dropped her bags and rushed towards the distraught Van. "Van, are you alright?" she asked trying to look him in the eye but he just looked away trying to avoid any eye contact. "Van, what's wrong?" she asked knowing that she wasn't going to like the answer.

Van finally looked up at her and she stepped back out of the shock of the look that she saw in his face. "Mom woke up but had another attack shortly afterwards. She had to be rushed back into the ER again," he said in an unstable voice. His shaking just got worse.

Fiona caught Van because he looked like he was about to collapse. He had been doing great since that day and now he was back to where he started. Maria didn't look to good as well. Both had such a great relationship with their parents and to hear this much be too much for them.

Maria was leaning against the wall for support while Van leaned into Fiona's embrace. "I need to get to the hospital. I need to make sure that she will be alright," Maria said and then looked towards Van. "Maybe he should stay here. He doesn't look up to any traveling," Maria said turning to the door but she was still leaning against the wall.

Van tried to stand up but Fiona pushed him back into the seat. "Please Van. You look like you could use some rest. It would do you no good being there in you shape. Just get some rest and we'll go when she gets out. I am sure she will be fine. I'll stay with you if that is what you want," Fiona said holding him tightly to her.

Van just nodded because he knew that was what his mother would have wanted. He always was the more emotional person of the family. He took after his mother with that. Maria had a little more control over her emotions so it would be easier to go. He would probably cause trouble because of it.

"Come on, I'll drive you," Moonbay offered and Maria just nodded her head and followed her out of the house. This left only the two of lovers in the house with a silent Fiona trying to comfort Van.

"Come on Van," Fiona said helping Van onto his feet. He stumbled a bit at first but Fiona helped him up into his room and into his bed. She crawled in next to him and wrapped her arms around him and buried her face into his chest. "It'll be ok Van. I am sure that she will be fine," she once again assured him but that didn't stop his shaking.

Fiona looked at Van. She was so distraught by the turn of events. They said she would be fine but then this happened. she feared what this might mean in the end. She had only hope that his mother would come out of this.

Fiona feared what this would mean for her and Van. She feared these events would make Van decide to just stick with Amy for his mother's sake. She feared that it would break them apart. She wouldn't be able to take it if that happened. It would tear her apart inside.

* * *

Maria walked calmly into the room to see her impatient father near an empty bed. Obviously they weren't done yet and wouldn't allow him into the emergency room with his wife. "What happened?" Maria asked in a shaky voice.

Dan was shocked by his daughter's sudden appearance but calmed down quickly. "She woke up for a short amount of time. I was just about to call you two about it but then she had another attack. It was much smaller this time but in her already weakened state, it just made it much worse," Dan said leaning back into his chair.

"I see," Maria said taking a seat that was facing in the direction of the window. "We decided it would be best for Van to stay home. He wasn't looking too good then so we thought that he should get some rest before he came here," Maria said and stared at the tall building that were out of the window.

"She has been in there for a little over an hour. I wish they would just tell us about how her condition currently is," Dan said but then the door to the room opened and a doctor walked into it. "How is she doing?" Dan asked in as calm of a voice as he could manage.

The doctor looked up at the two of them and smiled at them. "She'll be fine. We were a little worried but she seems to be doing fine and had regained consciousness. We gave her something to help her sleep though but she should wake up from it soon," he said and then smiled before walking out of the room.

Dan breathed a sigh of relief as he stood up and stretched a bit while they brought her back into the room. She had a peaceful look on her face and Dan was glad about that. "You'll be fine," he said kissing his wife's forehead.

"I am going to go and get you something to eat. You look like you haven't eaten all day," she said and he just nodded. "I'll be sure to avoid any cafeteria food as well," she said before walking out of the room. She knew of a good restaurant that was about a block away from the hospital and knew that was the best place to go.

* * *

Fiona's eyes opened slowly to see that the sun was setting. She had taken a small nap when Van had fallen asleep. She looked at him and smiled slightly when she saw how calmly he was sleeping. He seemed to have calmed down quite a bit since the phone call earlier that day.

Even though Van had calmed down, he still had this pitiful frown upon his face. It crushed her heart to see him like that. She wished for some way to help him through all of this but she felt completely helpless.

Being careful not to wake him, Fiona got out of the bed and after taking one quick look at him. She lightly kissed his cheek before she left the house and called a cab. She had a plan that might help Van but she feared his response to it. She saw herself in a lose-lose situation then.

Fiona got into the cab and let out a sigh before saying, "Please take me to the hospital," Fiona told the cab driver and he just nodded his head and drove without another word. Fiona could only stare out the window at the passing scenery.

She stepped out of the cab and walked into the hospital. Her steps were slow as she walked in the direction of Julie's room. She knew she would find Dan there and he was the person she needed to talk to. She knew he was the only one that could help Van. It was time that she told him the truth about Van.

Her situation was grim no matter what she did. If she didn't mention anything, then Van would suffer and be forced to stay with Amy the rest of his life. If she did say something, he probably wouldn't talk to her, but at least he would be free to do whatever he felt like.

She was being anything but selfish with this. She hoped he would understand why she did it. Even though Hiltz told him not to tell, didn't mean that someone else couldn't do it for him. Van's happiness was her only concern and she would do what she could to make him happy once again.

Fiona walked up to his mother's door and raised her hand to knock on the door but slowly pulled her hand back. It was a lot easier to think about it but it was a lot harder to actually do that. Van had faith in her not to mention anything and she didn't want to break that faith he had in her.

"Oh Fiona, what are you doing here?" Maria's voice came from out of nowhere startling Fiona and making her jump. "Where's Van? I thought that he would be with you since you are here. Is he already in the room?" she asked indicating the door that was directly behind Fiona.

"Van's not here. I kind of came alone," Fiona said and Maria gave her a confused look. "Do you think maybe we can talk?" Fiona asked figuring that Maria would be a good person to talk to since she already knew what was going on with Van.

"Sure, come on. Why don't we go and get something to drink?" She asked already walking towards the cafeteria with Fiona following close behind. She had this feeling that she knew what Fiona wanted to talk about since she wasn't here with Van.

They went down to the cafeteria and Maria grabbed a cup of coffee while Fiona just grabbed a soda. "So, what is it that you wanted to talk about Fiona?" Maria asked taking a sip out of her coffee before grimacing and adding a little cream to it.

"You're aware of what is happening to Van so I figure that you are a good person to talk to. Can I ask you a question?" Fiona asked and Maria just nodded her head. "What were things like before I moved here? I have heard things but I figured I would get a different perspective," Fiona said looking at her soda.

"What he was like before you moved here?" Maria repeated and Fiona just nodded her head. "He was a lot more carefree at least up until he started to go out with Amy. Being with her seemed to have changed him. He seemed to be happy so I never said anything but now I see differently," she said quietly as she took another sip of her coffee.

"He cares so much about your mother that he would do anything to make sure that she is ok," Fiona said with a sigh. "he was willing to give up everything he since had. I wish things could have been different for him," Fiona said with a sigh.

Maria sighed and looked at Fiona. "I have a feeling that I know what you are getting at. You wish to see him happy again but you know the only way to do that is to tell my father but you are afraid of Van's reaction," Maria stated as more of a fact than a question.

Fiona nodded her head. "I wish there was some other way but I see that there isn't any. You know this yet you don't say anything either, why?" Fiona asked as she took a small sip of her drink before putting it back down.

"Our father has a lot to deal with. I tried to find anyway to help Van while I was gone but found nothing to get him out of the mess. Eventually it just seemed to slip my mind as I got on with my regular life," Maria admitted feeling a little guilty that she basically just gave up on helping her brother.

"he says he wishes to be with me but all he can do is just do any searching by himself. I want to tell but I can't seem to get up the courage. I am afraid that Van won't talk to me again," Fiona said shaking a little at the thought.

"I am sure that he will be angry. Maybe it will work out though. Maybe our father can help and you would be able to do something to help Van just like you wanted to," Maria said hoping that Fiona's actions would have a positive effect for the young blonde haired woman. "Listen, I was just about to head home. Do you want a ride when you are finished?' Maria asked her.

Fiona shook her head no. "Thanks for the offer but I will be fine. I'll just get a cab back to my place afterwards. I am not really sure how long this is going to take," Fiona said throwing away her can. She gave a quick hug to Maria before the older woman departed leaving Fiona alone.

Fiona slowly walked up to the room she had been at before and this time she actually knocked on the door. "Come in," she heard Van's father say and she opened the door and walked into the room. "Oh hello Fiona. Is Van here?" Dan asked looking behind her.

"No I am here by myself," Fiona said looking towards the bed to see Van's peacefully sleeping mother. "Listen. There is something very important that I need to talk to you about."


	21. trust

Dan Flyheight stood in his office just staring out the window. There was a pained expression on his face as he remembered the conversation that he had with Fiona the previous night. It was all too fresh in his mind.

Flashback

Dan stared at Fiona for a second before he stood up and walked towards her. "What's wrong Fiona? What is it that you need to talk to me about that would cause you to come here so late at night?" he asked the blonde haired woman he thought of as a second daughter.

Fiona fidgeted under his gaze but she wouldn't stop. She had to do this no matter how painful it would be in the end. "Can… we talk about this some place else?" she asked him before taking a quick look at Julie who was sleeping peacefully at the moment. 'Hopefully it will last this time,' she thought with a frown.

"Um… sure. I needed to run down to my office anyways. We can talk about it along the way if you wish," he suggested and he just saw Fiona slowly nod her head. In all the time he'd known her, he had never seen her like this. He knew it had to be serious if she acted like this.

The two of them left the hospital knowing that Julie was in good ands and headed towards his car. Each of them remained silent on the way there and it remained silent as they made their way up the building and went into Dan's office.

Dan turned towards Fiona with a comforting look on his face. "Now, what is it that you wanted to talk to me about?" he asked her as he walked over to a cabinet to the far left corner of his office and started to rummage through it for something of importance.

"I-it has to do with Van," she said as her hands were nervously fumbling with the hem of her shirt. She saw that he still has his back turned but she knew that he was still listening to what she was saying. "H-he's suffering," was all she said as she stared towards the floor nervously.

Dan turned towards Fiona very quickly now with his own worried look on his face. "What's wrong with him Fiona?" he asked hastily. He didn't receive a reply. "If this is about his Julie's condition than I'm sure he'll be fine. Julie's strong so I know she'll make it through this," he said taking a seat at his desk.

"It's not solely about that," Fiona said very quietly. So quietly that it was almost hard to hear her. "Van's been suffering for a long time. I no longer know how I can help him besides doing this. Yet I fear he'll hate me for it," she said trying to keep herself from breaking down.

Dan looked at Fiona worriedly. "What's going on Fiona? If you know something that's hurting Van, please tell me," he said suddenly feeling even more worried for his family than ever. How could he not feel this way? His wife was in the hospital because of a disease that she had ever since she was a child, and Van was suffering for some reason. He knew he had to know what was going on.

"You know how Van and I love each other right?' she asked and he just nodded his head silently. "Yet he still sticks with Amy?" she asked again and he once again just nods his head. "He doesn't have a choice about being with her. He's in a relationship that he wants to get out of yet can't. Amy's father's forcing him into it," she said quietly.

Somehow Dan wasn't really surprised by this news. "That foolish boy," he mumbled under his breath. "Why is it that he didn't tell me about this and how long have you known?" he asked seriously.

"I've known about it since I first moved her. It had been going on for a few months before that. He didn't tell you because he feared for his mother. Hiltz holds his mother's health over his head to keep him with Amy. At first he was being threatened with your job but now it is with some information that would be dangerous for your business," she said finding it refreshing to get it off her chest.

Dan looked upset knowing that his stunt he pulled was the original cause of his son's suffering. "That still doesn't explain why he didn't tell me. I could've helped him," Dan said growing more frustrated by the second.

"He couldn't. Not only did Hiltz basically threaten your wife but he also said that if Van mentioned any of this to you that he would go through with his threat. When I learned about this, I was furious at them but Van made me promise never to mention this to anyone. I can't keep it in anymore. I want to help him but I can't do anything besides this," Fiona said looking up at Dan just as a tear fell from her eyes.

End Flashback

Dan groaned as he leaned back in his chair. Never in his life did he want stuff like this to happen to his family. 'Van and Fiona are suffering because of this, and yet even knowing, I can't do anything to help,' he thought looking over some papers in front of him.

He had nothing to do with the events that Hiltz was using against Van. Yet it was still something very serious. He had no idea how Hiltz could have possibly of found such information since it was stuff that was supposed to be well guarded. He knew that there was probably a spy somewhere giving Hiltz this information.

Hiltz had wanted Dan's company for years. But despite that, the two of them have never met. That was the reason he was able to get a job at Hiltz's company. 'He must have done this thinking that he would have a better chance at it since his daughter was with my son. I don't think he ever suspected Fiona to come into the picture,' Dan thought before slamming his fist down on the table.

He took a quick look towards a couch in the far corner where Fiona was sleeping. The girl was so tired the previous night that she just fell asleep there and Dan couldn't bring himself to move her.

He always dreamed since he met the young woman that she would be Van's future wife. Yet at the rate things were going, Van would be forced to marry Amy instead. Dan knew he wasn't going to give Hiltz the opportunity to get what he dreamed of for so long.

Dan quickly reached for the phone intent on confronting Van about it. Maybe if the two of them worked together they would be able to come up with some way to get Van out of this mess.

He was about to start dialing when the door to the room opened and a young man who worked directly under him walked into the room. "Yes, is there something you need Derek?" Dan asked placing the phone back down and staring at the young man standing before him.

The young man was the one that first met Van that day that he learned the truth about his father and his eventual inheritance. "It's good to see you back sir. How is your wife doing?" the young man asked in a way that told everyone around him that he was sucking up to Dan.

"She is getting better now after a second attack yesterday. The doctors feel like she should make a full recovery," he said with a serious face. "Now is there something you needed because I have a few problems I need to take care of," Dan said looking back at the folder in front of him.

"Oh yes. Mr. Hiltz Jewel has just dropped by and is wishing to have a word with you," Derek said as he fidgeted a bit. "Also these papers need to have your signature," he said handing Dan another small folder.

Dan took the folder but didn't make any other indication of doing anything for a few moments. "Tell him that I'm really busy right now and will have to talk to him later," he said sneaking a quick look towards Fiona. Hiltz would probably come up with ideas if he saw her there. He also wouldn't hesitate to come up with false accusations as well. Make Dan look bad.

Derek looked at Dan a bit shocked. "But sir," he attempted to argue but Dan just held up his hand to tell him to be quiet and pointed towards the door telling him to leave. "As you wish sir," he said before exiting the room silently.

It was silent in the room but he could also hear some arguing from the other room. He breathed a sigh of relief when it died down and he heard Hiltz leaving the floor. 'Probably trying to do something to further his plans. As if ruining Van's life wasn't bad enough. Amy probably isn't helping the matter either,' he thought rubbing his head.

A rustling sound was heard and he turned to see Fiona sitting up. Obviously all the arguing has finally woken her up. "Good morning Fiona," he said with a smile as she sat up straight and stared around the room.

Fiona looked around the room before remembering what she did the night before. "Sorry, I must have fallen asleep," she said trying to stand up but stopped when she saw Dan motion her to sit back down.

"Please stay. I was just about to call Van. I really need to talk with him about this," he said but then saw the fearful look in Fiona's eyes. "Don't worry Fiona. You did the right thing in telling me. I'm sure that he'll see that as well," Dan said lifting up the phone and dialing a number in it.

Fiona just stood up and looked around the room. It was the first time that she's ever been it but she had to say she was impressed. But despite this she was still worried about Van's reaction.

She listened to the conversation and noted to herself that Dan didn't mention anything about what he wanted Van for. He just told Van to come to the office before he hung up with a sigh.

Dan saw that Fiona was still there. "Why don't you go get something to eat? It will be a little while before he gets here," Dan suggested and he saw Fiona nod before walking out the door. He felt sorry for her since she had to go through all of this for the one she loved the most.

* * *

About thirty minutes to an hour later, Van walked into the large building still rather tired because his father woke him up. He was upset when he woke up because he didn't see Fiona there with him like she was there for him when he fell asleep.

For some reason, he had this bad feeling. Like something was going to happen. No matter how much he tried to push the feeling aside, it continued to come back to him. That just made him worried what it was that was so important that his father had to wake him up at seven in the morning to talk to him about.

Van walked over to the elevator and got on quickly riding it to the top floor. He stepped off and passed by Rosso and Viola who both looked too tired to care and headed towards his father's office.

Van suddenly felt eyes on him and turned to see his father's vice president staring at him before he turned away trying to act as inconspicuous as possible. It didn't work because Van was aware that he was doing it anyways. The guy gave Van the creeps but he just ignored it.

Van stepped up to the door but hesitated a bit but eventually grabbed the handle and opened the door to see his father already behind his desk waiting for Van and one other person with their back away from him. "Is there something that you wanted dad?" Van asked taking a few steps forward.

"Yes please have a seat Van," he said pointing to the seat next to Fiona. He hoped that what he was about to say would end up ruining this relationship that the two of them had going. He knew that Fiona was the best thing to ever happen to Van.

Van walked towards the seat and then noticed who was in the other seat. "Fiona/ What are you doing here?" he asked her but she just turned her head away from him. He was filled with a bit of dread at that point because he had a feeling that he knew what was going on. He only hoped that he was wrong.

Van took the seat and nervously looked between his father and his love as if silently asking for some sort of information. "What going on?" he asked fidgeting a little under the intense stare of his father.

"Van, Fiona came to me last night and we had a discussion and she admitted something very disturbing," Dan said and he saw Van visibly pale a few shades at the mention of it. He knew then that Fiona was telling the truth. Not that he doubted her. He just found it hard to believe. "You're being blackmailed Van?" he asked his son to get it from his own mouth.

A pale Van turned towards Fiona who looked away from him. He couldn't believe that she told his father that. He felt that his parents shouldn't be involved. "How could you tell them Fiona?" Van yelled standing up suddenly.

"Don't yell at Fiona! She did the right thing in telling me that. It was obviously very hard for her to do so as well because of the guilt she's feeling by doing so," Dan reprimanded his son while trying to calm him down.

"How could you do that Fiona? I trusted you with a secret I thought you could keep!" Van said completely ignoring his father. He felt a bit betrayed by the person that he trusted the most. Even though he knew her intentions were honorable, he didn't want his parents involved.

"Van!" Dan yelled standing up quickly. "Shut up and sit down!" he yelled at the top of his lungs. He never in his life had to use that tone of voice with his son but he couldn't stand how Van was reacting to this. Most would think he would be relieved to know that would have some help in this sort of situation.

Van was shocked to hear his father yell at him like he just did. He was too angry though and just turned around and stormed out of the room without another word to either of the other two occupants.

Dan just sighed and put his hand down on the desk. He expected a bad reaction but he never thought his won would react as badly as he did. 'Maybe these events just go to show that I don't know as much about my son as I thought it did,' he thought extremely disappointed with himself.

Fiona suddenly got up and ran out of the room hoping that she would be able to catch Van before he left. "Van!" she yelled just as the elevator door opened. She saw him pause for a second before he just walked into it and closed the door without even looking at her.

That felt worse than a slap to the face for Fiona. 'I was only trying to help him,' she thought as she sank to her knees and felt the tears start to fall down her face. 'I lost him,' she thought as the tears only increased in numbers.

Dan walked out of his office and just saw Fiona kneeling on the ground. He looked towards Rosso and Viola and noticed that they were completely clueless about what they should do. The two of them never really were good when they were put in that sort of situation.

Dan kneeled down next to Fiona and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It'll be ok Fiona. He's just a bit angry but just give him a little time and he'll cool down," he suggested to her but she didn't respond. "Why don't I get you home? You can use some rest," he said helping her up before taking her home.

* * *

Fiona felt so lousy for the next few days. Even though she knew he would react like that, she just felt so horrible that he wouldn't even talk to her about it. He avoided her at any cost and that hurt worse than when she got hit by that car.

She missed him so badly. She never thought she could miss anyone like this in her entire life and it had only been three days since then. Each of those days that passed, she could feel her heart breaking a little more each day.

She asked herself whether it was worth it. She wondered if things might have been better if she had just kept her mouth shut. Yet she knew that she did the right thing for him even if she did end up losing him. He might have a chance to be free again even if she wouldn't be there with him when it happened.

No matter how hurt she was feeling at that moment, she knew that she would never take back what she did. She saw the true suffering that he was going through and that tore her heart apart worse than this event ever could. She wished that he could see her point of view though.

She heard the door to her room open and then close the next second but she made no indication of responding to whoever was in her room. She just wanted to wallow in her depression.

Moonbay stared at her friend. She was shocked to say the least. Not once since she first met Fiona did she ever see her in such a state. Fiona was normally a cheerful person and to see her in this state would bring tears to the eyes of all the people that knew her best.

She walked over to her bed and sat down next to Fiona. "Hey what's wrong Fiona?" she asked placing a hand on her shoulder to get her attention. It didn't have much of an effect on the young blonde haired woman. 'What happened to her? She won't seem to talk to anyone about it,' Moonbay thought sadly.

Moonbay was suddenly startled out of her thoughts when she heard Fiona speak in a raspy voice obviously showing that she'd been this way for a little while. "H-he hates me," Fiona muttered into her already tearstained pillow.

Moonbay didn't even have to ask to know who Fiona was talking about. What she wanted to know was how Van could possibly hate her. She didn't know any two people who could possibly be more in love. "Why does he hate you Fiona?" Moonbay asked softly.

Fiona didn't respond to her question. Moonbay didn't know who to hate more. Fiona for not being honest with her or Van for putting Fiona in the condition that she was currently in. It was a very close choice. 'Maybe Van will have some answers,' she thought cracking her knuckles.

She stood up from the bed and started to walk to the door. She hated to leave her friend in this state but she wanted some answers, maybe then she would be able to find a way to help her friend. "I want to help but I can't do so without any answers from you," Moonbay said rather roughly before leaving the room.

Fiona turned her head and stared at the door sadly. She suddenly felt even more alone than before. She wished that she had Van to care of the hole she felt in her heart but she couldn't have that unless her actually decided to talk to her but it didn't appear that that would be happening anytime soon.

The door opened once more and Fiona saw her mother step into the room. She looked highly disappointed in her daughter. She thought that she raised Fiona a lot better than this. "Why are you still in bed Fiona?" she asked Fiona in a serious tone.

Fiona looked at her mothers face and felt guilty. Her mother and friends were just worried for her and yet she wouldn't listen to any of them. "H-he won't talk to me anymore," she said shaking slightly at remembering how cold her was to her.

The next thing that her mother said to her completely took Fiona off guard. "I don't see you doing anything about it Fiona. Are you just going to wallow in your self-pity or are you going to try and do something useful?" she asked rather coldly as she took a seat next to Fiona.

"I have tried talking to him. I have called him over and over again but he just won't talk to me. I tried to do something that would actually help him and now he hates me for it," Fiona said as another tear fell down her eyes.

Her mother sat down on the bed next to Fiona and hugged Fiona slightly. "What could you have done that could possibly make him act like this to you Fiona?" she asked softly not being able to find it in herself to be angry at Fiona for acting the way that she was.

"He trusted me with something, a secret. I saw him suffering because of it and I told someone that I thought would be able to help him. He feels like I betrayed his trust by doing so," she said crying into her mothers shoulder.

"Is there anything wrong with trying to help someone you know is suffering?" her mother asked Fiona and she shook her head. "Then why are you just sitting her crying over it when you can try to talk to him and explain yourself? You shouldn't give up because of this. You two love each other so you should try talking it over or you'll end like me and your father," her mother said with a small smile.

"You're right," Fiona said feeling bad about making her mother worry so much. She'd been acting like a baby up till now. "I really need to talk to him," she said and saw her mother smile and nod her head before standing up.

"First I think you need to get yourself cleaned up and get something to eat. You're going to get yourself sick if you keep this up," she said and then left the room shortly after so that Fiona could pull herself together.

Fiona got off the bed and headed towards the bathroom for a much needed shower since she hadn't done so in a couple of days. It felt very relaxing on her sore muscle and by the time that she was finished, she felt ready to finally confront Van.

She walked over to her desk and grabbed a piece of paper. 'If he won't talk to me in person, maybe he will at least read a letter if I send it to him,' she thought as she started to write down words that came from her heart. She just hoped that he would read it when it was finished.

* * *

By the time that Monday came around, Van had yet to speak with Fiona. It was partly because of his anger but also because of other problems he was having. Most of them having to do with Amy.

He was relieved when he was told his mother woke up on Sunday. After that, Amy came over and wouldn't leave him alone. It was almost as if she would do anything to have sex with him. He just couldn't do that if he wasn't in love with her. It wouldn't feel right to him.

Fiona tried to call him several times but he just wouldn't answer her calls. Yet he felt so bad for doing so. His parents weren't supposed to be involved. If Hiltz found out that they knew, then he would ruin them. Van couldn't allow that to happen. That was why he kept it a secret for so long.

He can't say that he didn't want to talk to her because he wanted to talk to her so desperately. Yet he felt betrayed because she told those that weren't supposed to know. He had all the faith in the world in her. He would trust her with his life. Yet she betrayed that trust.

Van leaned back on his bed just staring up at the ceiling. He had no sleep the previous night and it showed with how bloodshot his eyes were. He could barely stand up and hadn't eaten in several days. He just didn't care though.

Amy came barging into the room the next second in a fury and stormed over to Van. "Oh come on Van! What's with you these past few days? You told me your mother was going to be alright so why are you still acting like this?" Amy yelled at her non-caring boyfriend.

Van just turned away from her. Her father was the cause of his problems after all. "It's nothing. I just haven't been feeling too good these past few days. Can you please just leave me alone?" he asked her in a tired voice.

"Of course you're not feeling good! You're not exactly eating much and I'm pretty sure you haven't slept! So what the hell is wrong with you?" she screamed out at him but grew more annoyed when he wouldn't do anything but stare at the wall next to his bed.

Suddenly the door to his room burst open and Irvine stormed into the room. To say the least he was very pissed off. He never took very lightly to those who'd hurt Fiona the way that Van did.

Van sat up in his bed to ask Irvine why he was here but before he could even get a word out of his mouth, Irvine punched him hard across the face sending him falling face first into the bed. 'I know what he's mad about,' Van thought just remaining the way that he was.

"What the hell is your problem Irvine?" Amy yelled rushing to check on Van but saw that he was just fine. "Why'd you hit him? What'd he do to you?" she asked as she stared at the furious man before her.

With a very serious look on his face, Irvine pointed to the door. "Leave!" he ordered her in such a cold tone that left little room for argument. He saw her open her mouth to speak. "Leave!" he yelled again because he was about to seriously chew Van out for his behavior.

Amy just grunted as she walked out of the room. "Fine, see if you can knock some sense into him. He's been acting weird anyways. Meanwhile I'm going to the mall. I have prom shopping to do," she said throwing her hair over her shoulder before leaving the room completely.

When she was gone and Irvine heard the sound of her car pulling away from the house, he turned his full attention to Van. "Where the hell do you get off treating Fiona like that Van?" he asked grabbing the front of Van's shirt and hoisting him up so the two of them were face to face.

"Don't yell at me about it! Maybe you should talk to her!" Van yelled pulling himself out of Irvine's grasp. "She's the one who had to open her big mouth and tell my dad what was going on!" Van yelled crossing his arms over his chest.

"Ever thought that maybe she was doing it for you Van? That she was trying to help you through this horrible time you're going through?' Irvine yelled growing more frustrated by the minute. He was actually glad that Fiona did what she did.

"They weren't supposed to know. Do you even know what Hiltz will do if he finds out that they knew the truth. He'll ruin my dad, his company, and in the process hurt my mother as well. I was trying to avoid that and she knew that and still told him!' Van yelled finally letting out the frustration that had been building up the past few days.

"Personally I think that she did the right thing in telling them! At least this way there is a chance for you to get out of it!" he yelled punching Van once again hoping to knock some sense into the dense boy.

"What's the point of getting out of it if my family will have to suffer because of it? I love Fiona more than anything in the world but I will put the welfare of my family before all else!" Van yelled swinging back and hitting Irvine in the cheek just like how Irvine had done it to him a few seconds before.

"What about Fiona? You're parents consider her family and yet you are still hurting her as well. She doesn't say it but she suffers because of this Van! Probably just like you are!" he yelled taking a step away from Van and running a hand through his messy hair.

Van just groaned and fell onto his back and stared up at the ceiling. "She still didn't have to tell them Irvine. She didn't have to betray my trust in her by pulling that stunt," Van said finally calming down as a hand ran across his face as he started to grow frustrated with himself.

"Ever thought of maybe asking her why she did what she did?" Irvine asked as if it was the simplest thing in the world. "Ever think that she had a good reason to do so?" Irvine asked clenching his hand into a fist.

Van stared up at the ceiling and didn't bother to respond. He felt bad enough as it was for ignoring her but he was just too angry to actually talk to her. He wished things hadn't turned out the way that they did.

Irvine shook in anger but took a deep breath and managed to calm down a bit. He reached into his pocket and pulled something out of it. "I don't even see why she bothers to put up with you. Let alone write you this," he said throwing the envelope at Van's feet before walking out of the room before he murdered Van.

Van sat up and stared at the envelope and gently picked it up. 'Even with how I've been treating her, she's still trying to talk to me,' he thought walking over to his desk and he just sat down without doing anything.

He stared at the envelope contemplating whether to read it right then, wait till later, or just not read it. He knew that the last option was out of the question. Fiona was trying so hard to contact him; he figured the least he could do was hear her out.

Van decided and lifted the envelope and opened it. He pulled the letter out of the envelope and read it. The more he did, the harder his heart constricted in his chest. 'I really have been a jerk,' he thought going over the letter once more.

'Dear Van,

I'm sorry if what I did upset you so much. Even before I decided to tell your father, I knew what it would mean and how you would react. Yet I still went through with it. Despite knowing how you were going to react, it still hurt so much. Getting hit by that car ten times over wouldn't come near the amount of pain I'm feeling about this.

Even if I could change time and go back to stop myself from doing what I did, I probably wouldn't be able to do it. I feel what I did; I did for the right reasons. I saw how you were truly hurting that night as you cried for me about your mother. I saw the pain in your eyes. I felt that pain myself which is why I felt I had to tell them.

I betrayed your trust in me not to tell them and I know this is my punishment. I didn't just do this for myself. No matter how much I wish I could be that selfish, I did it all for you. No matter what your choice is concerning this, I will always love you. Even with me, I hope that this might help you gain the freedom you deserve. You deserve the choice of being with who you want and not just what is placed upon you.

I sometimes wish that none of this ever had to happen so that it would never put either of us into this position. I wonder how things could have been if you'd never met Amy when we first met. Maybe it doesn't matter because you can't change the past. But I hope I could've given you a better future even if I'm not a part of it. I just hope you can forgive me some day.

I'll love you always,

Fiona'

Van kept reading the note over and over. 'She knew how I'd react and yet she still told him? Why would she do something like that?' Van asked himself as a tear actually fell from his eye. 'I should have let her talk,' he thought slamming his head down on the desk.

Van suddenly stood up quickly and after taking a quick shower and grabbing a bite to eat, he left the house in a hurry. The strange thing was that he wasn't going to Fiona's house. He knew of something better he could do.

Van drove into the city and headed towards his father's office where he knew his father was currently working. He reached the building and raced into it and without greeting anyone like he normally did, he just got into the elevator and rode it to the top floor.

Van stepped out of the elevator and rushed towards his father's office. Without even knocking, he pushed the door open and walked into the room. He immediately saw his father at his desk looking over some documents.

Dan looked up form the papers and saw his son standing there looking a little ragged. "Is there something I can help you with Van? Have you finally come to your senses?" Dan asked seriously since he still had the events of that day still fresh in his mind.

Van walked over and took a seat across from his father. "Is there anything you can do about it? Was what Fiona did in vain or can you actually help me?" Van asked seriously while also looking rather guilty.

Dan gave a weak smile as he watched his son. "I wasn't even aware of some of the things that he has on you until Fiona told me about them. Because of that, I have no knowledge at the moment of what I can do to help," he said with an upset sigh.

Van groaned as he slumped down into the seat and turned to stare out the window. "So what you're telling me, is that you can't help me at all?" he said closing his eyes figuring that he might never be able to give Fiona what she deserved. He forgave her and now wanted to make her happy just like she tried to do for him.

"I'm not saying that at all. I'm just saying that I don't have enough knowledge of these events to find some way to get you out of them," Dan said handing Van the file he'd been looking over before Van came in. "The events were done illegally without my consent but it affects the business nonetheless," he said as Van took the folder.

"The key is to find something to use against him. It might make him drop what he has on you. Unfortunately, as ruthless as he is, he runs a pretty clean business. But even the cleanest of things can have their dirty side, the key is finding them," Dan explained when Van was finished looking it over.

Van sighed as he handed the folder back to his father. "Do you think there is any chance of finding something? Also why were you looking this over even before I asked about it?" Van asked curiously.

"It not only affects you but the company so it is my duty to look it over and try to set things right. I can't allow this to get out or it could ruin the company and put many people out of a job. I am sure that there is something we can do though. you just need to be patient," Dan said with a smile as he placed the folder back into a cabinet.

Just as he did that and was about to sit down, the door to the room was thrown open and a man with red hair stepped into the room. Van sneered at his presence but tried to not bring attention to himself. Dan was surprisingly calm about him being there.

"Good Morning Hiltz!" Dan asked too cheerfully for Van's taste. "What can I do for you this fine day?" Dan asked standing up and walking over to Hiltz. He held out his hand to shake Hiltz's hand out of kindness but them man didn't even try to return the gesture.

Hiltz did probably the rudest thing that either of them ever saw. He just ignored Dan and then sat down in his seat behind the desk and placed his feet on top of it. "Nice place you got here," he said thumbing through the things on top of the desk. "Oh good morning Van. What are you doing here?" he asked the youngest of the men in the room.

"We were just talking about how he was going to inherit this place after I retire. I want to make sure that he's completely ready for it when the time comes," Dan said clearly annoyed with Hiltz's behavior but he didn't voice it out and just kept up a smile on his face.

Hiltz put on a face that made it look like he was interested when in fact he was anything but interested. "Interesting. I'm interested to see what you can do when you take over this place Van. I'm sure that there will be a lot closer of relations between our two companies then since you're dating my daughter. Probably you two will even get married," he said with a suggestive smirk.

Dan saw Van tense up again and put a hand on his shoulder. "Van, Hiltz and I have some business to take care of. We'll have to finish this later," he said hoping to get Van out before a confrontation occurred. Even before knowing, Dan knew that Van hated Hiltz and he couldn't blame him for that.

"Yes dad. I have some business that I need to take care of anyways," Van said grateful that they had the day off of school that day. It meant that he had more time to look for Fiona since she wasn't at home when he called earlier.

Hiltz just smirked at Van. "Nonsense Van. Have a seat. We just have a few things to discuss," he said indication the seat across from him. He was way too confident for the other two men in the room. It drove both of them nuts.

"That's ok. I really do have stuff to do. I have to go talk to Irvine about something then I have to also talk with your daughter. I think I angered her earlier," Van said with a cheesy smile trying to act as naturally as possible. He lied about it but he only lied about the Irvine part, he really did need to get back on Amy's good side or things could happen and Hiltz would get suspicious.

Hiltz leaned back and entwined his own fingers with each other. "Well then, maybe I really shouldn't keep you. You shouldn't get on my little girls bad side anyways," he said indicating the door.

Van was becoming more and more pissed at him that day. He was acting as if he owned the place. Barking out orders and thinking that he could get away with anything that he wanted to do. "Very well," he said with a slight smile before he walked out the door without another word.

Van was all too glad to get out of that office when he did. He walked calmly out of the office but once the door closed, he broke out in a run towards the elevator. Unfortunately a voice brought hi to a halt. "Van, can I talk to you for a second?" the voice of Viola asked as Van groaned.

Van walked over to her desk and leaned against it. "Is there something you need because I'm in a bit of a hurry to get out of here," Van said bouncing around on his heels. He wanted to go before Hiltz and his father were done with their meeting.

Viola just looked at Van for a second before grabbing a small notepad. "Listen, I want you to take something downstairs to my sister Rosa. It's on your way so it shouldn't be much of a problem," she said as she wrote out a bit of a long message. It was a minute or two before she finished it and handed it to Van. "Thanks," she said before getting back to her work.

Van grabbed the note and rushed towards the elevator once again. 'The sooner I get away from that man the better. I hope he doesn't go with what he said. I don't want to be the one to hurt Fiona anymore,' he thought as the elevator came to a stop and started to open.

The door wasn't even completely open before he squeezed inside of it and pushed the button for the bottom floor and then continued pushing the button to close the door as quickly as possible but it just seemed to want to close as slowly as possible.

Luck didn't seem to be with him that day because just as the door was starting to close, a hand placed itself inside of it and the door forced itself open again and much to Van's displeasure, Hiltz stepped into the elevator.

Hiltz just smirked as he pressed the button for a different floor and leaned against the back wall. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were trying to get away from me. Now I'd that Van?" he asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.

Van felt like shooting himself then and there. "I was just trying to get on with my business. Viola kind of kept me a few minutes and I was in a hurry before then," Van said trying to put on his calmest voice. He always found it unnerving whenever Hiltz took guesses to what he was actually doing.

"I see," Hiltz said although you could tell that he really didn't believe it. "Since you're going to the prom with my daughter Van, let me make several things clear to you. I want you to give my daughter whatever she wants. If she asks you, you'd better do it," he said with a cold tone in his voice.

Van just couldn't figure this guy out. Most parents would discourage the type of behavior he was suggesting but Hiltz was encouraging it. Van knew what Amy wanted but he didn't know if he could go through with it. "I-I'll try," Van stuttered slightly as his heart pounded furiously in his chest.

"There is no try with me Van. It is either you do or you don't. But we both know you don't have that second option. Now tell me something, does your father know anything about what's going on? What about my daughter? She better not know anything either," he said staring straight at Van as he tried his best to keep calm.

"Amy doesn't know anything. As for my father, I haven't said a word to him but he would get suspicious if I act strange about things relating to your daughter. He might end up guessing," Van said as his heart sped up a few paces. He was glad he wasn't lying completely either. He didn't say a word about it to his father about it, Fiona did.

"Well don't let him guess either. I wouldn't want that information to get out or your family will lose everything. I'll feel bad if that happened," he said although his voice didn't hold any feelings of guilt about it.

Much to Van's relief, the elevator came to a stop on the bottom floor and the two of them get off. I promise I won't tell him anything," Van said in a surprisingly calm tone. 'Especially since he already knows,' Van thought with a bit of amusement that he was able to hide.

Hiltz looked at Van as if he was studying him looking for any sort of lie in it. Unfortunately for him, Van was always able to lie pretty good if needed. He had to learn to keep up with what Hiltz was doing to him. "Good,' he said before walking in a different direction than Van was going.

Van breathed out a sigh of relief at being free from that man's presence. 'Why did that meeting have to be short? I could have avoided that if it was short,' he thought walking towards the front desk where Rosa was sitting. "Viola told me to give this to you," he said handing her the note.

Rosa smiled and took the note gently into her hands. "Why thank you Van. I've been waiting for this," she said with a bright smile before she opened up the letter and all her attention was away from Van.

When Van reached his car, he was glad that he didn't have to worry about Hiltz popping up out of nowhere and ruining the rest of his day. 'Now to beg for forgiveness from Fiona,' he thought pulling out of a parking space and started in the direction of her house hoping she was home.

Van pulled up to the house about twenty minutes later and ran up to the door and knocked on it. It was opened a few seconds later to the face of Fiona's mother. "Hello Van," she said a bit seriously. She was upset with him right then so she wasn't quite her normal friendly self.

"Um… hello Mrs. Lynnette. I was wonder if I can talk to Fiona," he said and saw her give a look asking why he should let him talk to her. "I… came to apologize to her. I was acting like a jerk when she was only trying to help me," he said looking towards the ground.

Fiona's mother suddenly smiled and opened the door all the way. "Good to hear you admit that. Unfortunately she isn't here right now. Moonbay took her to the mall earlier today and they haven't come back," she explained giving an apologetic look as well.

Van groaned and hung his head. Suddenly it snapped back up and he had a smile on his face. "Thank Mrs. Lynette. I think I will go look for. Please tell her I came by if she comes home," he said already rushing to his car.

He quickly jumped into his car and sped away. Even though he was going far over the speed limit, he didn't seem to get pulled over as he raced to the mall. Besides nearly running over several people, Van made it there without many problems.

Van jumped out of his car and started to walk into the mall while trying to think of something to say to Fiona. 'I'm sorry Fiona,' was his first thought. 'No, just too plain,' he thought with a sigh. 'Please forgive me, I was a big jerk,' he thought but shrug at it. He had no idea what he was going to say to her. He at least hoped that she would forgive him.

Van was brought out of his thoughts when he noticed how crowded the mall was that day. 'Damn it! This is going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack!' he mentally cursed at himself. He ran a hand through his currently messy hair and just started to search.

"You know Fiona," a voice said from behind him and he cautiously turned around to see Moonbay and Fiona walking in the opposite direction. "You're too lenient with him. If he ever wants forgiveness, I suggest that you make him grovel to do so," Moonbay suggested with a smirk as Fiona giggled.

Van groaned hoping that he wouldn't really have to go through all that. 'What the hell am I thinking? If it means getting her back then I would do just about anything,' he thought running a slightly different direction that lead to where they were going without anyone seeing him.

Van snuck into a small passage that no one really used. He looked out of it and saw the two of them approaching the area. Just as they were passing by, Van reached out and grabbed Fiona's arm pulling her into the small alley area.

Fiona was about to scream when a hand was placed over her mouth and it turned her head so that she was looking into the eyes of Van. "What are you doing Van?" she asked a little stunned by what had just happened to her.

Van carefully looked out and it didn't appear that anyone noticed what he'd done to Fiona. Although he could see Moonbay currently looking around for Fiona without much luck. "I wanted to talk to you," he said softly staring into her eyes.

Fiona was a bit speechless. First he wouldn't talk to her and now he just dragged her out of the way and was demanding to speak to her. She could feel her previously hurt heart already feeling better.

"I'm sorry Fiona. I acted like such a jerk to you and I'm sorry about that. I know you were only trying to help so it just makes me feel even worse about what I did. I hope that you can forgive an ass like me," he said looking towards the ground.

Fiona smiled slightly. She saw that he was truly sorry and it warmed her heart to no end. "No, I can't forgive an ass," she said and saw his head drop and just smiled more. "But I can forgive you Van," she said before kissing his lips quickly.

"Are you sure Fiona? I don't want you to regret this later. If you want I'll just go out there and yell out to everyone how I love you," he said with a small smile when he saw her blush slightly at his statement. "Forget everyone! We can just leave and never look back," he said and honestly believed it himself.

"As much as I would love for that to happen, I couldn't put your family through it. I probably put you family through enough as it is for telling your father. Like I said before, I'll be patient and wait for that day," she said kissing him again.

"It seems like such a long time from now," Van said entwining his fingers with Fiona's. "I wish everything would just end already. That way this secrecy could end. You deserve much more than that," he said sadly. But he never took his eyes off of Fiona.

"I'm not so sure about that but well wait as long as it takes. You're father's helping us now so it might not take as long as we thought," she said leaning up again and kissing Van again.

Van caught Fiona around the waist and pulled her as close to him as possible. His lips hungrily devoured her own. His tongue came out and licked her lips and her mouth opened and their tongues clashed fiercely with one another. Van's free hand lightly stroked up and down Fiona's arm.

Fiona pulled back when the need for air required it. Her cheeks were flushed and she was breathing rather heavily. "I like it when you kiss like that," she said wrapping her arms around his neck and giving feather light kisses to him.

Van pulled back and smirked at her. "Well maybe I can do a lot better than that. There just isn't enough passion with her so I don't know how good I actually am. Maybe you can help me," he said making Fiona giggle slightly. he leaned down and captured her lips again in a much more passionate kiss if it was even possible.

Fiona had never felt like this before. Van was making her do things she wouldn't normally do. The excitement of what they were doing was not lost on her. They were basically making out in a public place. She knew they should be a little more careful but she was enjoying herself too much to want to stop.

Van pulled away but never let go of Fiona. "I'm going to head out to my car. Go to the main parking lot in twenty minutes. It'll be easy to see. My mother woke up a few days ago so we'll go see her and then I'm going to take you somewhere tonight. Screw the consequences," he said kissing her lips once again.

"That sounds nice, I'll see you then," she said reluctantly pulling away and walking out of the entrance to the area they were in. 'Good thing it was dark in there or someone would have easily seen us. For some strange reason, that's exciting me though,' she thought with a smile.

"Well you two sure seemed to be enjoying yourselves," Moonbay said as she waited right next to the opening. It hadn't taken her very long to realize where Fiona had gone to and why she was there. She just waited patiently for their little apology to be finished with before she would drag Fiona away.

"Oh sorry Moonbay. He just pulled me in there all of a sudden. I just couldn't pull myself away though. He apologized though and I'm happy for that. Now things are back to normal," she said with a smile with her face tinted pink slightly.

"I'm telling you Fiona. You should have made him beg a bit more before you accepted his apology. It would have been fun to see him squirming like that," she said with a laugh but it soon faded. "Better finish our shopping trip because you two have a date," she said pulling Fiona along.

A few minutes after that, Van walked out of the little space and walked in the direction of his car. He got to his car and only a few minutes after that Fiona came and quickly jumped into the car as well.

Van turned to look at her and pecked her on the lips before pulling the car out of the parking space. One hand remained on the steering wheel but the other clutched onto Fiona's hand tightly.

Suddenly a thought came to his mind. 'Damn!' he thought knowing that this would ruin the night for the two of them. "Um… we have a bit of a problem Fiona," he said with a nervous chuckle. He knew she was understanding but he didn't want to ruin their night.

Fiona turned to look at Van and had a bit of a bad feeling. "What wrong Van?" she asked softly as she clutched his hand a little tighter. Somehow she seemed to know what was going through his mind. "Does it have to do with Amy?" she asked nervously but with determination.

Van just nodded his head sadly. "I went to talk to my dad earlier and ran into Hiltz. I wanted to get away and came up with an excuse that I needed to talk to Irvine and then apologize to Amy about a fight we had. If I don't do that and he figured out, then he will get suspicious," Van said with a small whine.

Fiona looked at him with a sad smile. Her hand reached out and gently caressed his cheek. "You need to do what you need to do. Please just make it quick," she said and he nodded and kissed the palm of her hand.

"I'll drop you off at your house and then come to pick you up when I'm finished. I want to be truthful about something else Fiona. Also when I met with Hiltz, he's making me do something that I know will affect on our relationship,' he said looking really sad about it.

Fiona's heart clenched tightly in her chest. Every time that man made Van do something, it never meant any good to Van or those around him. She was almost afraid to hear what it is that he had to say.

Van pulled the car over to the side of the road and turned towards Fiona. "On the night of prom, he wants me to do whatever Amy tells me to do. Unfortunately I know what she'll want and I just can't give that to her," he said taking her hands in his shaking ones.

Fiona looked towards their interlocking hands sadly. "So what you're saying is that she'll want you to have sex and you can't do anything about it?" she asked in a shaking tone. The thought of the man she loved the most doing that with someone else scared Fiona worse than death.

Van reluctantly nodded his head. "I don't know what to do Fiona. To tell the truth, I'm still a virgin and I would rather lose that to someone like you than her," he said honestly although he didn't know why he said that.

Fiona blushed from head to toe at his statement. "Me too Van. But I would rather have our first time be special. I want the timing to be perfect. I know you'll make the right decisions concerning this. You'll think of some way around it," she said caressing his cheek again as he started to drive again.

"I sure hope so," he said as they pulled up to her house. "I'll be back in as soon as possible. I want you to be ready for me when I get here," he said as she nodded kissing him and then jumping out of the car.

Van sadly drove away from Fiona's house and towards a less pleasing destination. He just hoped that Hiltz wasn't there and everything would go smooth enough so that he could get out of there as quickly as possible.

He pulled up to the mansion and got out of the car. He walked slowly to the door and knocked on it. The door suddenly flung open after that and Amy dived into his arms nearly knocking him over. "Hey Amy," he said trying to sound as happy as possible.

"Good, you're here," she said happily pushing him into the house and up to her room. Nice to see that you've finally stopped moping around about what happened to your mother. Irvine finally knocked some sense into you," she said closing her door when they were in there.

Van turned towards Amy and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, about that. I'm sorry if I was acting like a jerk then. I'm just going through a rough time right now," he said apologetically hoping that she'd buy it.

Amy just smirked and approached Van. "Of course I forgive. A relationship can't work if the two can't forgive each other for their mistakes. I know of a good apology," she said before pushing Van down onto the bed which he happened to be standing right next to. She climbed on top of him and straddled his waist.

'Oh shit!' Van thought as he felt his body react. He couldn't help how his body reacted but he could help how his mind reacted. 'Alright, think cold thoughts. Arctic, snow, ice water, Irvine in a bikini. Alright, that works,' he thought as his body settled down and he grabbed Amy and flipped them over.

Amy smirked suggestively. "So you like to be in charge. I always pictured you as that type of guy," she said with a smirk but it faded when he got off her. "Hey! What're you doing?" she asked him.

"Sorry but I got plans with my family tonight," he said and then saw her open her mouth which was most definitely to protest. "Which I can't get out of so don't try to make me change my mind," he said before walking to the door.

"Then why did you come here? Don't tell me it was just to apologize!" she yelled at him and saw him just nod his head at her. That just set her off even more. "Why do you keep doing that? Why do you keep turning me down?" she yelled at him to reach the floor.

"You just have bad timing. Listen I don't want you to get mad at me. I've just been really busy these last few weeks and I just don't have the time for things. Please forgive me about that but it isn't in my control," he said with a sigh as he stared towards the ground.

Amy groaned and fell onto the bed. "Fine! I have other things to do before the day ends as well. I can't wait to show you the dress I got for prom. It is at the end of the week. It's going to be so much fun," she said with happily.

Van mentally sighed. The dress was all that she'd been going on about since she first got it. "I'm sure that I'll love it when I see it. But you won't let me so I'll just be going. We each have a lot of things to do," he said kissing her quickly before leaving. He hated doing that to Fiona but he didn't want to draw attention to himself.

Van was all too glad to get out of the house when he did. He never would understand Amy and her obsession with wanting to have sex with him. Sex without love was meaningless to Van. That was why he could only picture doing it with Fiona. At least they were in love. He cared for Amy deeply but just not in that way.

Van got in his car and drove to Fiona's house where he found her waiting on her porch. "Hop in so we can get there soon," he said with a smile as she did just as she was told. "To the hospital," he said happily as they drove off.

* * *

The night had been a blast for the both of them. His mother was nearly back to full strength and felt like she was ready to go home. Much to her dismay, his father wanted her to stay in for just a few more days.

The two of them then headed to a fancy restaurant but Fiona protested and they went for burgers on her recommendation. Van loved how she chose something they would both like. Amy only went for the fancy places but Fiona preferred things simple and fun.

The two of them walked into her house that night and Van brought up something that was on his mind since his visit with Amy. "Hey Fiona, you said you'd show me your dress first since we couldn't go together," he said with a smile as Fiona turned towards him.

"Oh yeah, I did say that. Fine then, just wait a few minutes while I go change. You're going to love it," she said as she ran up the stairs and into her room. Closing and locking the door behind her.

Van sat on the couch and just waited patiently in the silent room since Fiona's mother was visiting Van's mother since the two had formed a close friendship with each other since their kids were so close to each other.

About five to ten minutes later, Van heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs and stood up quickly and saw Fiona coming down. His eyes nearly fell out of his head upon taking in the sight that was the love of his life.

She came down wearing the most beautiful baby blue dress he'd ever seen. It looked like something that was made for her and only her. It went all the way down to her ankles. She had matching color one and a half inch high heels. It was modest in the front but showed a bit of her back. It had very little if any sleeves on it.

Fiona smiled when she saw Van's jaw drop nearly to the floor. She chose the dress because she knew he'd like it. Most would choose their dress for their dates but she wanted it for him and no one else. "Guess you like the dress," she said with a chuckle at his stupefied appearance.

Van finally managed to close his mouth and smiled broadly. "Stupid Thomas. He gets to go with you in this lovely dress and I'm stuck going with someone else. Life just isn't fair," he said with a sigh and his head fell in disappointment.

Van suddenly heard the radio come on and a soft tune playing on it. His head raised and he saw Fiona approached him. He immediately knew what she was doing. "Can I have this first dance Fiona?" he asked her holding out his hand.

"Of course you may," she said taking a hold of his hand and was pulled as close to him. Their bodies moved in sync with each other almost so naturally. It was as if this was the way it was supposed to be. They just knew each other inside and out. So they knew what the other person's next move would be.

"You know what Fiona," Van said as his hand gave Fiona's a squeeze. He saw her look up at him and he smiled down at her. "I hope you do win prom queen. Because if I win and you win, then we can get a free dance, no questions asked," he said with a smile as her face lit up.

Fiona couldn't help but release the biggest smile at the thought. To her, that truly would make the night complete. It would be the one time they could be with each other in public. No one would have to know the truth about them but they could still get their own dance in front of everyone.

Fiona smiled and leaned up capturing Van's lips in her own. "Up until now, I haven't even thought about that. Now that you mention the rewards of it, it just makes me want to win it even more. Either way, I want a dance from you that night," she said caressing his cheek.

Van placed his hand over hers with a large smile on his face. "If you want a dance, then I'll give you one. I don't care when or how, but I'll get you alone sometime that night and we'll dance as long as you want," he said kissing her once again as the song ended and they were to pull apart.

They didn't pull apart though. They just stared at each other and continue their dance as if the song hadn't stop. That was just the way that each of them wanted it to be. They could just continue on with each other with no worries in the world.

Van suddenly felt himself fall backwards when he accidentally hit the couch and Fiona fell with him landing right on top of him. They ended up kissing each other passionately. Neither knew what was going to happen.

Suddenly the doorbell rang breaking the two of them from their moment. Van groaned as the two of them were forced away from each other. He saw Fiona get up and walk to the door and he just went into the kitchen to get something to drink.

Fiona walked to the door and opened it coming face to face with the person that she was supposed to be going to prom with, Thomas. Good thing she only peeked her head out the door because she didn't want Thomas to see what she was wearing. She only wanted to give Van that honor. "Oh hello Thomas. What are you doing here so late?" she asked with a slight smile.

"H-hello Fiona," he said with a large blush on his face. "I just came over to see if you might want to do something. Prom is at the end of the week and I wanted to know if you wanted to do something," he said nervously like he always was when he was around Fiona.

"I'm sorry Thomas but I'm busy right now. I was just trying on my dress thought," she said although regretted it when she saw Thomas's face light up in delight. She just knew what was going to come next.

Thomas smiled bright as thoughts of what she could possibly look like in it. "Really? Can I see?" he asked like an excited kid who was just given a toy store for his birthday. To anyone who could see it, it would startle them greatly.

"Sorry Thomas but you can't see it until prom. Now I need to get back to something I was doing," she said with a smile as she softly closed the door. She was kind of grateful for the doorbell but it annoyed her that Thomas would come by this late at night. 'Who knows what might have happened if he hadn't shown up,' she thought with a slight blush.

A pair of arms suddenly wrapped around Fiona's waist and she immediately relaxed into them. "I keep telling you Fiona. That guy just doesn't know when to quit. He's one of the reason's that I want all of this to end," Van said kissing the back of her neck eliciting a slight moan from Fiona.

Fiona had a little trouble thinking straight with what Van was doing to her. She finally managed to find words despite this. "Are you jealous? What can you possibly be jealous of?" she asked with a small smile.

Van pulled away from Fiona with a frown. "You can't possibly not see it Fiona. The guy has the biggest crush on you. I know you wouldn't go but I think he is on the borderline to becoming a stalker," Van said seriously.

Fiona lightly hit Van's chest at his comment. "Thomas is just a friend to me. I couldn't possibly see him as more than that. Don't worry about him Van," she said as she leaned her forehead so it rested on Van's shoulder.

"I'll always worry Fiona. Until all this is over, everyone will see you as this single woman. Not to mention a very desirable woman. Not that I can blame them," he said with a slight chuckle that didn't seem to hold as much humor as it normally did.

"Like I said, don't worry. No one interests me like you do. I love you and no one else. You can trust me that I would never go to one of them," she said with a smile before pulling away slight. "Putting that aside, I'm going to get changed," she said heading up the stairs and into her room.

She came back down a few moments later in casual clothes. "I don't know about you, but I'm up to a movie. What do you say Van?" she asked with a smile as she joined him on the couch as rested her head on his shoulder.

"That sounds great to me. You choose the movie, and I'll go get the popcorn," Van said standing up and heading to the kitchen. He returned a few minutes later with a bowl in his hand and sat down next to an already awaiting Fiona. She snuggled up to him as the movie started and they just enjoyed the rest of the night.


	22. the perfect night

Van sighed a deep sigh as he sat in one of his study halls. Normally he was extremely happy to be in this class because he could actually relax instead of listening to teachers go on and on about things that he'd have no need for later in his life.

He just sat there and listened as Amy went on and on with talking. "I bet you can't wait to see what dress I'm wearing!" she said excitedly. "Like I said before, despite you badgering, I'm not going to let you see it until prom night," she said with a grin on her face.

"I haven't been badgering you about it," Van said before her let out a yawn. "I'm sure it's a lovely dress but it doesn't bug me every night and day about what it looks like. I can wait," Van said leaning his head on his hand.

"Oh come on Van. Prom is in two days. The least you can do is be a bit more excited about it," she said before coming in close. "Who knows, maybe I'll let you take the dress off me later in the night," she said with a smirk but failed to notice the annoyed look that crossed Van's face.

"I might be more excited if certain things hadn't happened the way they have in the past few weeks. My mother just got out of the hospital for Christ's sake!" Van said a bit annoyed. 'Not to mention that Fiona's going with some dork!' he thought bitterly after seeing Thomas walking around a little too happy in the past few days.

"All the more reason for you to just enjoy it. You've been too stressed. I know a good way to relieve that," Amy whispered seductively into Van's ears so that no one else in the room would be able to hear her.

Van turned towards her and glared at her. "That's all you ever think of, isn't it?" he yelled at her causing the rest of the students and the teacher to turn in their direction. Van didn't seem to mind all the attention. Amy just wouldn't stop and it was really starting to get on her nerves.

Amy looked around and saw all the staring people and blushed in embarrassment. "Keep it down Van! No one really needs to know about our plans," she growled underneath her breath as the students and the teacher all went back to what they were doing before.

"What plans are you talking about exactly?" Van asked trying to play stupid. He could then imagine Irvine telling him that he didn't need to try and groaned. He knew he was stupid for going out with Amy in the first place.

"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about!" She nearly yelled drawing several peoples' attention towards them again. She groan in embarrassment and turned to see Van smirking. She growled and then turned forwards and starting scribbling in her notebook.

Van grinned in success. He knew that with someone like Amy. She could only get annoyed so much before she starts to ignore the person. Even if he would force himself to apologize later. For now, he just wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet that this gained him. Even if just for a little while.

* * *

Van groaned as he pulled into his driveway later that day. He wanted to see if he could find Fiona and pick her up but she just seemed to disappear after school. He knew that with Amy ignoring him that he'd be able to get more time in with her. 

He stepped out of his car and walked into his house. He heard voice and walked into the kitchen to see both his mother and Fiona sitting there waiting for him. 'Good to see that you're better and at home mom," Van said as she got up and he gave her a hug. "How'd you get here before me Fiona?" he asked as she stood up and walked towards him.

"After you're father picked me up from the hospital, we both drove by the school and picked her up. It made sense now so we figured that we'd do something to help you two. Not to mention I want some pictures since the two of you aren't going to prom together," she said holding up a camera which appeared out of midair.

Van chuckled at his mother's one track mind. "I have no problems with that. But what would've happened if I came home with Amy instead of alone. That would've quite some explaining on your part," she said holding his ribs which hurt from his laughing.

"I thought of that but Irvine also informed me that you kind of ticked her off to such an extent that she hadn't been talking to you all day," she said now laughing herself along with Van. She wished that Amy wouldn't talk to Van for the rest of their life. That way Van could be free to do what he wanted.

"Want to give her what she wants Van? They had my dress brought over," Fiona said and she saw Van just nod his head. She smiled and walked up to where Van's said they placed her dress.

They apparently stopped by her house before the picked her up. Apparently, her mother wanted some pictures too. However, she was a bit busy to come but Van's mother said that she offered to take some pictures and take them for Fiona's mother. Fiona liked the idea. They wouldn't be able to get pictures before prom so now was the best time that she could think of.

For what felt like hours after that, picture after picture was taken in all sorts of poses. Fiona felt like she was going to end up going blind if it didn't stop soon and she knew that Van had the exact same thoughts in his mind.

Fiona fell flat on her bed exhausted after the hours of pictures taking and curled up deep into it. She stared at her right ring finger at the ring that Van gave her for her birthday. As she promised herself, she never took the ring off unless it was completely necessary and she had really had any reason yet to deem it necessary.

'Your promise. When will it ever be able to become real? I tire of waiting. No matter what, I'll continue to wait though. I just wish that things would just move a little faster,' Fiona thought with a sad sigh.

Fiona remembered a fuss that Amy put up when she first saw it. She threw accusation after accusation at Fiona. Saying stuff like she stole the ring since there was no way that she could afford it normally. Fiona smiled at her own reaction. She just turned and left infuriating Amy even more.

It seemed to Fiona that Amy was doing everything in her power to make Fiona do something to get into trouble. However, after her stunt after the naming of those on prom court, Amy couldn't do anything to Fiona without having the risk of being taken off prom court. That was the only thing that kept Fiona from doing anything.

'The years almost over and I won't have to worry about her after that. But what about Van? Will he be able to come with me or go with her to college?' she asked herself turning over and staring at a picture on her nightstand.

'We'll be together forever, won't we Van?' she asked herself as her finger lightly traced the outline of Van in the picture. It was on that was taken before the two found out that they were in love with each other but they were both so happy in the picture. 'Van doesn't smile like that anymore,' she thought as she picked up the picture and stared at it more carefully.

Fiona then placed the picture back on her night stand and curled up in her bed. 'I hope that you'll smile like that again some day,' she thought before she closed her eyes and fell asleep with a small frown on her face.

* * *

Dr. D opened his mouth as if to say something but the loud talking of the rest of the students stopped him. "You know, I've never seen a senior class look this excited about prom," Dr. D said the next day in class. He just couldn't get anyone's attention that day because they were all talking rather excitedly. 

It didn't matter to him because the seniors basically had the day off although they did have to go to school, although he did have something to say to them. It was something that was required of most teachers to say. He just knew that they weren't going to listen.

"Quiet down!" he finally snapped and yelled causing every student in the class to close their mouth and look at him wondering why he had to interrupt them. They weren't supposed to learn anything that day.

"I know that all of you are eager to get out of here since it's a half day for seniors but I've some things to say," he said and then cleared his throat. He suddenly had a change of mind. "Oh never mind. You probably heard it from your parents anyways. Not like you'll listen to me about it after that. Just be sure to play it safe tomorrow," he said walking around and sitting behind his desk.

The entire class grinned. They knew what he was going to say since they all probably heard it from their parents in the last few days. A stupid speech about making the right choices and such. They were just glad that Dr. D summed it down because none of them felt like listening to the long boring speech again.

Moonbay leaned over towards Fiona to finish their discussion as to what their plans were for tomorrow before the prom. "So what are your plans? You can always come with me. I need to have something done with my hair anyways," Moonbay said to the depressed looking woman.

The more the prom was talked about, the worse Fiona felt about it. Sure Thomas was a good person to her but she didn't want to go with him. She wanted to go with Van. "Um… sure, I guess I can," Fiona muttered as she laid her head on her desk.

Moonbay sighed as she saw her friend's very unenthusiastic response. "Oh come on Fiona. You'll need to look better for when your crowned prom queen tomorrow," Moonbay said growing more excited at the thought of it bring Amy down a notch or two. The woman needed to be knocked off her high horse.

Somehow the woman she was thinking about managed to hear what she said and walked up towards them. "You actually think that she can win? Oh please, I'll be crowned tomorrow and she'll just run home crying. There's no chance that she can beat me," she said in her usual snotty voice.

"I personally think that she has the best chance of beating you tomorrow. Besides you, almost everyone in the school likes her. You'll be the one crying as you see that crown placed upon her head," Moonbay grinned and leaned back in her seat.

"Somehow I doubt that. In case you forgot, I was the one that won homecoming queen. She wasn't even nominated then. Just because she's been nominated, doesn't mean that she can possibly win," Amy said before she turned around and walked back to her desk which was next to the sleeping Van.

Moonbay scowled and then turned to Fiona. "Fiona, I swear, if you lose to her then I'll never forgive you. I want to make sure she loses and you win!" Moonbay growled out glaring at the Raven haired woman sitting a few seats ahead of her. Never before had she wanted to see the woman lose so badly.

Fiona just chuckled nervously but she knew that Moonbay didn't mean what she said. She knew Moonbay would forgive her… eventually. However, the thought of the prom queen was making her more and more nervous as it approached. The anticipation was absolutely killing her.

Before she was nominated, she didn't even think much about it. Now that she was nominated, she wanted to win the title so badly. Not just because it meant that she could beat Amy, although it was a very tempting reason, but because it allowed her to dance with Van no questions asked.

* * *

Fiona woke up the next morning when Moonbay came barging into the room excitedly. Fiona looked towards her alarm clock and groaned when it said that it was only eight in the morning. She preferred to sleep in when she didn't have school. 

"Hey come on Fiona! You need to wake and get ready! I know your tired and so am I but you need to get up because we have a lot to do before prom tonight," Moonbay said but it didn't seem to have much of an effect. "You want to look nice for Van don't you?" Moonbay asked and chuckled when Fiona finally sat up. She then left the room so that Fiona could get ready.

Fiona slowly got out of bed and walked slowly to the bathroom. She took a nice warm shower for what felt like such a short time when in fact it was nearly thirty minutes before she got out. She looked and then remembered that she didn't bring any clothes with her so she just threw a towel around herself and walked out of the bathroom and into her room.

She pulled on a white t-shirt and a pair of shorts as well as her shoes and socks before she ran down the stairs where Moonbay was watching Saturday morning cartoons on the TV. "I'm ready Moonbay," Fiona called out making Moonbay turn off the TV and walk over to her.

"About damn time! I was beginning to wonder how long you were planning on staying in that shower," Moonbay grinned as the two of them walked out of the house and to a car that Fiona guessed Moonbay 'borrowed' from Irvine.

Fiona looked it over and couldn't help but chuckle. "Swiped his car didn't you?" she asked Moonbay who gave an innocent look. "Don't you think he might want to use it?" Fiona asked as she hopped into the passenger's seat.

"Not really. Last I checked he was still sleeping so I don't think he'll need it unless he plans to drive in his sleep. Not like he'll really need it though. We do. Besides, a left a note," Moonbay said as she drove away quickly.

* * *

Overall, Fiona found the day to be very relaxing. Moonbay took her out to a spa for a little while and then the two of them went to get their hair and nails done by a professional before they went back to Fiona's. 

It was nearly two in the afternoon by the time they got back to Fiona's place. They immediately saw a rather angry looking Irvine as they drove into the driveway. Both knew that Moonbay was in for it from him.

"You just had to take my car didn't you?" Irvine asked before the two of them even got out of the car. The door was open though so he knew that they could hear him. Sure he didn't need it since he had everything her needed to do done the day before then. But he was still angry that she did. "What if needed it?" he barked at Moonbay.

Moonbay couldn't help the grin that spread across her face. "When he sees me, he'll forget all about this anger issue he has going," Moonbay said before she stepped out of the car. "Chill out Irvine. Fiona and I had more important needs," she said with a grin.

Irvine turned to yell at her but shut up when he saw her. Her normally pony tailed hair was now much more tamed and fell flat against her back. She looked absolutely stunning to him that he just couldn't help but gawk at her. She looked absolutely stunning in his eyes.

Moonbay grinned once again. "You can stop gawking. I know I look good," she said and laughed when she saw him shake his head to clear his thoughts. "Sorry about that but we needed a ride. You wouldn't want us looking bad for tonight would you?" she asked putting a frown upon her face.

"Oh fine! Lay the guilt trip on me," Irvine said grabbing his car keys from Moonbay and walking back to his car. He took a quick look at Fiona and nodded his head knowing that Van too was really going to like it. Her hair was in a bun at the top of her head with a few loose tendrils falling across her face.

He suddenly remembered that he had something else to say so he quickly turned to Moonbay and Fiona again. "Thomas and I'll be by at around five thirty, six o'clock to pick you two up. We'll head to dinner and then to prom," he said before driving off.

Moonbay laughed at Irvine's reaction to her again before she turned to Fiona and walked towards her and the door. "That means we have little time to spare Fiona," Moonbay said grabbing Fiona's hand and dragging her into the house. They still had a lot to do in the next few hours.

* * *

It seemed to be more work than they thought it would be to get ready. They had to somehow find a way to get their dresses on without messing up their hair which they luckily succeeded at. It was nearly five by the time that they finished putting everything one plus the light amount of makeup each of them wore. 

'We probably would've been done a lot sooner if we hadn't been fooling around so much while getting ready," Fiona said as she looked at herself in the mirror and gave herself a nod of approval. She just knew that Van would like what she did for today. It was mainly for him even if she was going with Thomas.

"Probably. But at least it helped us waste the time before the two of them got there. Hey! Guess what I heard from Thomas yesterday," Moonbay said sounding a little excited. She just saw Fiona shrug. "We get to go in a limo to this thing," she said sounding more excited than before.

Fiona thought it sounded really interesting. She'd never been in a limo before so it sounded nice to try it at least once. "Did Van do it since he's the only one I know that can afford that sort of thing," she said as she sat on her bed as they waited for the two boys to show up.

"No, he's going separately. He wanted to 'drive down with Irvine' so that he could be with you but Amy wouldn't hear anything of it. So we're stuck going without him. Thomas said that he was the one that set it up so that we could go in a limo," Moonbay said as she straightened out a few things on her outfit.

"I feel bad for Thomas. He's trying so hard to impress me but I would still rather go with Van," Fiona said sadly. Sure she knew that Thomas liked her but she felt bad that she could also never be able to return his feelings.

"Just forget about it for tonight Fiona. By tomorrow, everything will end up going back to the way it was before all this prom fiasco," Moonbay said and smiled when she heard the doorbell ring. "They're early," she said as she heard Fiona's mother call for the two girls.

* * *

Fiona's mother Tricia sat across from the boys across from her. One of them looked and unhealthy pale color that made her worry a little. "Are you ok? You don't look to good," she said to Thomas as she clutched a corset in his hands. 

Thomas jumped a little at the voice but settled down when he saw it was just Fiona's mother. "I'm fine," he muttered clearing his throat. 'Just nervous,' he thought pulling at the collar of his black tux.

To Thomas, he was most nervous about just being there. sure he'd been friends with Fiona since she first came here but this was the first time meeting her mother in person as well as actually being in her house. It was a little nerve-wracking to him but there was nothing he could do.

Tricia just looked at him quizzically for a moment before she shrugged her shoulders. She'd heard of Thomas before but she never met him in person and to tell the truth, she didn't really like him nearly as much as she did the first time that she met Van.

Irvine too was a little nervous but he didn't show it quite as much as Thomas. He'd seen Moonbay earlier of that day and just that small preview made him even more anxious to see what she looked like all dressed up.

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs made the two men stand up and turn towards it just as Moonbay reached the bottom of the stairs. Irvine gapped even more than he did earlier that day at the sight of her.

"What do you think?" she asked with a grin as she twirled around in front of his. Her dress was a red one that went hung off her shoulders and went down to her feet. It showed a bit of cleavage but not a whole lot.

Irvine chuckled a bit. It looked like it cost a lot and he couldn't put it past Moonbay to be just that. She always did have a bit of a taste in expensive fancy clothes. "You look great. Come on, let's head out to the limo," he said holding out his arm to her and then when she looped her arm with his, the two of them walked out the door.

Thomas was even more eager than before. He had to admit that Moonbay looked good but to him, that must mean that Fiona looked ten times better. He was right too when he saw her come down the stairs a moment later. He liked a lot but he wished it was his favorite color instead, green. "Amazing," he muttered as he took a few steps forward and held out the corset. "I got this for you Fiona," he muttered with a blush.

Fiona looked at it and managed a small smile. "Thank you Thomas," she said as he slipped it onto her wrist. When she saw that he was holding out his arm to her, she grabbed a hold of it and walked out still wishing that it was Van that she could be doing this with.

Tricia watched her only daughter walk out and couldn't help the see the look of disappointment on her face. "It always sad to force yourself away from the one you love," she said thinking of her ex-husband. A man so caught up in his work that he never had time for his family. Ever since they moved there, the two of them probably had only a few words from him.

She turned and walked into the kitchen but took a look at a picture of their family taken only a few months before their divorce. She had to basically force him to take the picture even though he said he was in a hurry. "I actually feel better about leaving him though. I don't want Fiona to be disappointed," she said before walking out of the room.

* * *

Van couldn't help but be impressed with the way the huge place looked. The place was covered in streamers and balloons of the school's colors, white and blue. Dozens of table were scattered all over the room each covered in a light blue table clothes and in the center was a wide open area for people to dance in. The lighting was dim but there was still a good enough amount to see the place with. 

Amy looked around the room and wasn't quite as impressed with their surroundings. "I think they could have done a lot better. My daddy donated money into this event just for me. The least they could do was make it a lot better," she said never being very impressed with it.

Van groaned in annoyance. "You're never impressed with anything unless you're involved," he muttered to himself hoping that she wouldn't be able to hear what she said. No matter what her reaction, he liked what they did with the place.

"What was that Van?" Amy asked thinking she heard him say something. She saw him wave his hand so as to forget it. She didn't feel like getting into it so she just let it drop thinking that it was nothing.

Van, Amy, and a few of Amy's friends all took a seat that was close to the stage. Van knew that it was just Amy's excuse to be on the stage before anyone else but didn't say anything about it. Van also couldn't help but notice that they were one of the first groups there.

Van looked around and frowned when he couldn't see Fiona there anywhere. 'Maybe for right now it's for the best. I'd hate to have to see Thomas hanging all over her,' he thought as he stood up and walked towards the punch bowl. "Want anything to drink?" he asked Amy as he left.

Amy stopped talking with her friends and turned towards him. She managed a weak smile because she didn't like that he interrupted her conversation. "Sure," she said before she turned back and continued to talk more.

Van walked over to the refreshment table and poured two glasses but just as he was about to walk back to the table, he caught a glimpse of a small group of four walking into the room.

He noticed that Irvine and Moonbay led the group into the big room and that Fiona and Thomas were walking behind them. Van nearly crushed the glass he had when he noticed that Thomas had his arm wrapped around Fiona. He was happy to see that she didn't look too comfortable with it.

Van nearly jumped when he saw that Amy was suddenly standing beside him. "Oh brother. Why did they have to show?" Amy growled out at the sight of them. "I always knew that the bitch had a taste for losers. This just proves it with how her and the dork are together," she said with a wicked sneer.

'Well excuse me for being a loser,' Van thought looking at her with a deadpan look. He was lucky that she didn't notice. "Here," he said carefully handing her the drink trying hard not to spill it on the silver dress she was wearing. He knew that she would kill him if he did that.

The silver dress went down to her feet and was sleeveless. It showed a decent amount of cleavage much to Van's distress. 'Probably trying to seduce me again,' he thought in annoyance. It was a nice dress but Van like Fiona's a lot better.

A fast tune started to play on the speakers and Amy brightened up. "Come on Van," Amy said finishing her drink and dragged him to the close to empty dance floor. She grabbed his arms and wrapped them around her. Her back pressed against his chest as she swayed to the music in an experienced way.

Van figured that he didn't have much of a choice and just went along with it. He quickly looked in Fiona's direction and saw her watching them and he grimaced. He hated doing this but he had to in order to keep her from saying anything bad about the night to her dad.

* * *

Fiona watched the dance between the two of them. 'Get yourself together Fiona. Not like he can do anything!' she thought angrily as she took the seat that Thomas pulled out for her. She was barely able to mutter a thanks to him as he took his own seat. 

Thomas noticed her looking at something and turned to see Van and Amy dancing closer than any dance he'd ever seen. "I know, It's disgusting, isn't it?" he asked her and she just nodded her head without taking her eyes off of it.

Irvine and Moonbay looked at each other with a rather amused look on their faces. They could see the jealousy written all over Fiona's face and they couldn't blame her. They also felt bad for Thomas for believing what he did. She was more jealous than disgusted.

Irvine suddenly stood up and turned to Moonbay. He held out his hand to her. "Let's dance, shall we?" he asked with a grin as she took his hand. he then turned to Thomas and Fiona. "Come on you two!" he said with a bright smile.

Fiona stood up almost immediately but Thomas remained seated. "I don't like dancing to these songs," he said remaining firmly in his seat. He saw the disappointed look on Fiona's face but he didn't feel like making a fool out of himself for not being able to dance.

"Looks like I can't since I've no one to dance with," she said with a frown. Van was taken, and her date wouldn't dance even though she wanted to. This was one of the reasons that she didn't want to go to prom in the first place.

Moonbay just grinned and pulled Fiona from the chair. "Nonsense, just have some fun with us. Plus you don't exactly need a date for this type of dancing," she said wrapping one arm around Fiona's shoulders and the other around Irvine. "Come on you two," she said leading them to the dance floor.

Dancing always came quite easy to Fiona. Before she'd moved, she'd taken many lessons and was really good at it, or at least that was what she was told. It always felt so good to be able for her to just let loose and dance freely.

"You go girl!" Moonbay yelled seeing her friend immediately fall into the music and have a good time. She found it pathetic that Thomas wouldn't dance to anything but a slow song but she couldn't do anything about it.

Off to the side, Van was gawking at the fluidity of Fiona's movements as she danced. The woman he was currently dancing with seemed to be completely unaware of the direction that her boyfriend's attention was and just continued with her sensual yet faced paced dance. She was hoping that it would warm Van up for what she had planned for later that night.

She looked around finally and noticed that they weren't alone on the dance floor and noticed that Fiona was gaining a lot of attention for her moves. "She should learn how to dance properly!" Amy yelled angrily although she knew that Fiona was dancing like a professional but she refused to admit it.

Van didn't like the looks that were flashing through her eyes. "Don't start a fight with her. I don't feel like causing any problems tonight. I just want to have a little fun," he whispered into her ears and breathed a sigh of relief when she nodded but he just knew that she was reluctant to agree to his demands.

Amy suddenly grinned at a way to upstage Fiona. "Why don't we show her how to properly do this," she said as another song started and she went into a different style of dancing. It was similar to what Fiona was doing but seemed a little wilder and more unpredictable.

'Always has to try and be the best,' Van thought with a chuckle but he noticed, as well as Amy, that people either stopped watching or were watching Fiona a little closer. "Why don't we go sit down? I need a break," he said seeing her grow angry as he pulled her off the dance floor.

After several songs, Fiona finally decided to take a little break and walked back to their table where Thomas still sat alone. "Please don't tell me that you're just going to sit here the entire time," Fiona said with a sigh seeing this becoming a little boring. That was one of the reasons she didn't thinks he could ever feel for Thomas the way he did for her. He never tried anything new. Van was always willing to try new things, which is what attracted her to him more.

Thomas turned and looked at Fiona and gave her a weak smile. "I can't dance, so what's the point of going out there and humiliating myself in front of the entire senior class. They make fun of me enough as it is," Thomas said laying his head down upon the table.

Fiona groaned as she sat down in her seat. She liked Thomas as a friend but this really tended to annoy her quite a bit. She wanted to have more fun but her date wasn't really even trying to have any fun.

This was how it was for a while after that. Fiona finally got tired of it and stood up. "Come on Thomas! You came here to have some fun so do something besides sit down!" she said grabbing his hand and dragged him to the dance floor where an amused Irvine and Moonbay were waiting.

"Come on Fiona. I told you that I can't dance!" Thomas said as he tried to escape but it did no use since Irvine, Moonbay, and Fiona all blocked his path. He didn't see any other way out of his situation.

"Come on Thomas, it isn't that hard. All you have to do is just move a little," she said trying to get him started. She saw how stiff he looked and frowned. "Come on, loosen up a little. You're too stiff," she said and smiled when he did as she said. "Now just move you hips and arms a little. Here you got it," Fiona said seeing Thomas in what almost appeared to be a dance.

Van just stared on trying to suppress his own jealousy with how much attention Fiona was giving to Thomas to get him to dance. He now knew how he felt when she saw him dancing with Amy. Probably less though since Amy knew seductive type of dances.

"Look at that dork. He needs another dork to teach him how to dance. That guy looks stupid trying to dance from someone who doesn't know how to as it is," Amy said with a laugh almost rolling out of her chair.

Van just rolled his eyes. He never would get what Amy had against Fiona. He had to agree about Thomas being hopeless in dancing though. He continued to watch with half amusement, half jealousy as Fiona continued her hopeless campaign.

Fiona was really starting to see that Thomas really was close to hopeless at dancing. He seemed to unsure about each move and it made him look rather stupid as he attempted some moved but continued to screw up. She had to give him some points for trying though. She knew that this was hard for him as it was. She was determined to at least get him started on real dancing though.

Thomas finally grew a little frustrated at Fiona's attempts. "This is stupid. I can't dance so you should just stop trying," he said as he marched off the dance floor back towards their table. He could hear Amy laughing at him but he didn't hear much besides the music after that.

Fiona sighed sadly. She was only trying to get him to have a little fun. 'Is it so hard to just try and have fun?' she asked herself as Irvine, Moonbay, and her all walked back to their seats to rest their feet for a little.

"You know Thomas. Fiona was nice enough to go with you to prom. The least you could do is try and make her happy about it. You're not even trying!" Moonbay said angrily when she took a seat. She then stepped rather hard on his foot.

Thomas yelled in pain as he stood up and started to jump around a bit. "There! See? You're dancing!" Irvine felt like he just had to say as he watched Thomas bouncing around on one foot while massaging his other foot.

Fiona blushed in embarrassment at the antics of all her friends. 'I have weird friends,' she thought as she rubbed her head when a migraine started to form in it. She then looked up in time to see Van heading off on his own someplace. Neither Amy or anyone else seemed to follow him.

Fiona looked around her, Thomas didn't seem to be paying attention and Irvine and Moonbay were caught up in their own conversation. So Fiona stood up and quietly walked towards the exit that Van had just taken a few seconds prior.

Luckily for Fiona, no one seemed to notice what she was doing so all she had to do was keep her calm until she got out there. Several people waved at her but they didn't seem to have any ideas on what it was that she was going to do.

Exiting the ballroom, Fiona took a quick turn to the left, which is what she thought she saw Van taking, and continued to walk down what appeared to be a deserted corridor. All sorts of ideas came to Fiona about this.

After one more turn, Fiona nearly screamed when a hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her into the firm chest of Van. She then smiled and kissed him before he even had the chance to utter a single word to her. "I've waited all day to do that," she muttered after she pulled away.

"Same here," Van muttered capturing her lips once again as his arms tightened around her waist. He turned them around so that her back was pressed against the wall as he continued to kiss the beautiful woman before him. "How long would you say it'll be before they announce the prom king and queen?" Van asked looking at his watch.

A smile formed on her face. "It should still be about another twenty minutes or so. Let's just stay here while we wait. Hopefully, no one will end up coming to look for us," she said pulling him in hard. She didn't plan to let him go until she was forced to do so.

* * *

Thomas heard a slow song finally come on. It was the only type of song he knew how to dance to. He turned to ask Fiona if she wanted to dance but to his surprise, she'd vanished. "Fiona?" Thomas asked looking around but he didn't see her amongst the many students in the ballroom. 

Thomas turned and looked towards Irvine and Moonbay who were having an argument about something he didn't really want to know. "Have either of you seen Fiona? She seems to have disappeared," he said as he looked around but still failed to see her. He just saw them shrug. 'I hope she'll be back soon,' he thought as he stood up. "I'll be right back," he said to them but they didn't appear to hear him.

Thomas walked out of the large ballroom looking for the bathroom but he completely forgot where it was. He just walked in no particular direction in all sorts of halls trying to find the place. 'Maybe I should've asked someone,' he though as he stopped and look around. 'There should've been one by now. Maybe I missed it,' he thought turning around but then he heard a noise.

It sounded like a moan and he turned and saw the outline of two figures pressed together in the shadows of a nearby hall. He couldn't see one of the figures but the other one looked like Van.

'Great! The last thing I need is to see him making out with the stupid girlfriend of his,' he thought turning around trying to get away quickly but he heard another moan and something about it struck him quick. 'That doesn't sound like Amy,' he thought turning to look again.

From what he could see, It was definitely Van that was there but the sounds made from the other person were definitely not that of his girlfriend. 'Is he cheating on his girlfriend? That ought to make for an interesting sight later,' Thomas thought amused until her saw a wisp of blonde hair and his blood ran cold.

'No, it couldn't be,' he thought praying to anyone that it was someone else. Then again, all the others were still in the ballroom. Fiona was the only person that he knew was missing from it right then. 'It has to be a mistake. Why would she?' he thought as he started to panic.

"Oh Van," he heard the other person moan and he finally got a clear look at her face. It was definitely Fiona. He couldn't believe his eyes as he watched the sight before him. His date was kissing the man that was supposed to be her mortal enemy's boyfriend. Someone that is supposed to hate her just as much as his girlfriend hated her. It also appeared that she knew what she was doing.

Thomas felt a tear slide down his face at the sight of it all. He thought this was his big chance. She agreed to go with him to the prom and he thought he'd be able to make her see him differently after that night. Now this happened.

Thomas turned around and began to walk away from the scene. He couldn't bear to watch the woman he loved kissing someone like Van. It was just far too much to stand. The strange thing was he didn't hate her but at the same time he just couldn't be around her at that moment.

* * *

Fiona came back to the table about twenty minutes later and was met with an amused looking Irvine and Moonbay. 'Hey there. Did I miss anything? Where's Thomas?" she asked noticing that he was nowhere to be seen. 

"Did you enjoy yourself out there?" Moonbay asked with an amused stare. She'd seen Both Van and Fiona come back from a long absence. They came in separately but not too far apart. It wasn't hard to tell what they were up to.

Fiona blushed to the tip of her roots. She never thought she'd end up making out with Van in a public place like that. 'I find myself doing many strange things when I'm with him,' she thought as she chuckled nervously. "W-where's Thomas?" she asked again since her date had disappeared.

"No idea. Mentioned something about going somewhere and I haven't seen him since. Maybe he saw you and Van," Irvine joked not knowing how correct he actually was. He saw the worried look on Fiona's face as he said that. He wondered then if maybe it was true. "I'll go find him. I'll be back in a few," he said standing up and rushing out of the room.

He knew that if Thomas did see it, that he had to do something before Thomas said something. He knew that it shouldn't take that long to go to the restroom so he knew something was up and planned to find out if his thoughts were right.

It didn't take that long to Fiona Thomas. He was standing just out the doors looking like he was holding back many tears. "What's with you, why are you crying?" Irvine asked although he did have an idea why. "Did you see something?" Irvine asked stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"I'm not crying!" Thomas said wiping the tears from his face. He looked towards Irvine and saw the stern look at the other man's face. "What's going on between her and Van! I know that you know what I'm talking about!" Thomas yelled at Irvine.

"Sure I do. The simple answer is that Fiona's in love with him and he's in love with her," Irvine said deciding to just be blunt. Even if Thomas was hurt by it, he knew it would be for the best. "She went with you because he had to go with Amy," Irvine said keeping a stern look on his face. "Going to cry about it?" he asked with a smirk.

"I'm not crying!" Thomas yelled wiping more tears from his face. "How can she possibly love him! They're supposed to be enemies so how can they be lovers?" Thomas yelled out loud at Irvine.

Irvine was glad that everyone was inside and not listening to their conversation. "They've never been enemies. They've been friends since day one of her coming here. Up till now, all that you've seen between them was just an act they put on to appease Amy," Irvine said growing a little aggravated at how Thomas was acting.

"B-but I love her. Can't she see that? I've loved her all these years and she never gave me a chance!" Thomas continued to yell out. "It was him that I saw. He's the one I saw kissing Fiona when she was in the hospital, wasn't it?" Thomas said not wanting to believe all that he was being told.

"Most likely. That was around the time that they finally managed to say how they feel. Took them long enough to do it though," Irvine said with a smirk now realizing what was bugging Thomas when he came back to school afterwards. He'd been sulking for weeks and he only now learned why that was.

"I-I have to tell someone," Thomas blurted out absentmindedly before he was suddenly grabbed by Irvine and shoved against the side of the building. He flinched at the look in Irvine's eyes as well as the pain now surging through his back.

"Listen here Thomas. You may have a crush on Fiona but Van actually loves her," he growled out tightening his hold on Thomas's collar. "I swear, if you so much as say one word of what you saw or heard to anyone, I'll make your life a living hell. There more at stake than you think," Irvine said before releasing Thomas's collar before walking back inside.

Thomas shook slightly as he fell to the floor. 'Irvine knows about it, and Moonbay more than likely knows about it. Why is it that Fiona never told me about it? I've always been a loyal friend to her and she never trusted me enough to tell me of it,' Thomas thought as more tears threatened to fall down his face. "Why Fiona?" he asked himself.

* * *

Fiona looked up as Irvine once again took a seat at their table. "Did you find Thomas? Why hasn't he come back yet?" she asked with curiosity in her voice. Irvine just up and left looking for Thomas and it made Fiona worry. 

"He saw you and Van Fiona," Irvine whispered just loud enough so that only Moonbay and Fiona can hear. With the music, no one else would possibly be able to hear what he was saying. "He's pretty upset but I had to make sure that he didn't blab it out to anyone," Irvine said sincerely.

A saddened look crossed Fiona's face at the mention of it. He was her friend and she didn't mean to hurt him. "Maybe I should go talk to him," Fiona said standing up and started to walk to the door before Moonbay grabbed her wrists.

"Hey wait Fiona!" Moonbay said looking at the clock. "What about prom king and queen. They're probably going to announce it any minute now. You can't just leave!" Moonbay said in a hushed yell.

"It's ok. I'll only be a minute. I at least owe it to Thomas to talk to him about it," Fiona said as she calmly walked out of the doors and then to the outside where Irvine pointed Thomas out just before she left them.

The first thing that Fiona saw when she walked outside was Thomas staring up into the night sky wit a disappointed look upon his face. "Thomas?" she asked in a quiet voice as she approached him slowly.

Thomas' head snapped in Fiona's direction and he gave a faint smile. "Oh hey Fiona," he muttered turning his head back towards the sky. "What are you doing out here? Don't you have the prom queen thing going on?" he asked as he took a seat on the ground again.

"I wanted to make sure you're alright. I may not feel what you wish I would for you but you're still my friend. I'm sorry you had to see that but I hope you can understand," Fiona said softly placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Maybe I understand. Why couldn't you tell me Fiona? Did you just not trust me enough?" Thomas asked sadly as he ran a hand through his sandy blonde hair. "Irvine and Moonbay knew but I didn't?" he asked her hitting the back of his head against the building.

"It isn't that Thomas. Irvine and Moonbay weren't supposed to know either. It accidentally slipped with Moonbay and Irvine found out on his own. Neither me or Van wanted anyone to know so that it would be easier to keep our secret. He has so much a stake with his relationship with Amy that he just can't get out of it even though he wants to," she said placing a hand on his shoulder. "Can you please keep this a secret Thomas?" she asked in a soft voice and gave a small smile when she saw him nod. "Thank you," she muttered to herself.

Thomas stood up and turned to Fiona. We'd better get back in there Fiona or you'll miss you coronation as queen," he said with a laugh as the two of them walked back into the building.

"You act as if I've already won," Fiona said as they walked back into the ballroom. She saw Van look their way and gave a smile to try and calm the jealousy that she saw in his eyes at that moment.

"That's because I'm sure that you're going to win. Everyone in the school likes you so I don't see how it could even be possible for you not to win," he said as they took their seats again almost just as their principle took to the stage and the entire student body fell silent, which was unusual because they're usually loud when he tried to talk.

"Greeting everyone, are you all having a good time tonight?" he asked them enthusiastically. It was unusual to the students to see their principal so happy. He was usually very stern during school.

There was an enthusiastic applause from everyone in front of him and he smiled at that. "I'm sure that you're all just dying to hear the announcement for your prom king and queen!" he said and there was even more applause than the last time. "Alright then. Will the candidates for king please come to the stage?" he asked and the four candidates stood up. Van and Irvine were among them.

Fiona looked towards Amy who looked even more anxious than ever. She had a look that said that she already won. She didn't even look the least bit scared of the fact that she still only had a twenty-five percent chance of winning. It was same for all of the candidates.

All of the men on the stage looked nervous. Van was too even though most of the school thought that he was going to be the one to win. 'Guess not everyone can be as calm as Amy,' Fiona thought as she watched the scene unfolding before her.

The principal took to the podium again and held a card in his hand. "You prom king for the senior class is…" he said pausing for a dramatic effect. "Van Flyheight," he said and the senior class erupted in applause even though almost everyone knew that it was bound to happen.

Van shook hands with the other three men and smiled brightly. The prom king from the previous year was also there and shook Van's hand as he placed the crown on Van's head as was tradition for their school.

The principal then cleared his throat. "Now will the candidates to prom queen please come to the stage," he said suddenly feeling a little nervous because of the fact that two of the candidates were known to hate each other greatly. He just hoped that they kept to themselves for the day.

Amy seemed to make sure that she had to be the first one to take the stage. She immediately went up to Van and kissed him to congratulate him. She had a posture of superiority when she stood next to the others. Two of which were her friends.

Each of the ladies was given a beautiful rose. Amy took hers proudly. All the others took theirs a bit timidly. Two of the ladies were actually nervous about winning because they thought that Amy would hurt them if they one. Fiona was more nervous than the rest because this is the biggest thing she had ever been in.

"My what a fine bunch of ladies we have here today. Since they all seem anxious to learn the results, let's not waist any time," he said unfolding an envelope and stared at it for a few moments. His face was devoid of all emotions making it impossible to tell what he was thinking. "Your prom queen for the senior class is…"

All of the ladies held their breath. Fiona hated the silence that seemed to take years when in fact it was only seconds. Van remained quiet but his stomach was churning on the inside. He was hoping that it would be Fiona.

Amy just smiled because she felt she already knew the results. She just about took a step forward when the biggest shock of her life came with the principles next words, "Fiona Alisi Lynette."

Amy paled greatly at his words. 'That can't be right! She can't possibly have beaten me!' she screamed in her mind as her eyes became filled with tears of rage. She had lost the highest position that she could possibly think of to her mortal enemy. 'It can't be right!' she screamed as she stormed past Fiona and down the stairs of the stage while nearly tripping over her dress in the process. She then ran out before anyone can say anything to her.

There was an applause for Fiona all over the place but the loudest seemed to be coming from her friends, most of it coming from Moonbay. Fiona was stunned, it all seemed like it had to be a dream that she was going to wake up from any second. 'Is this real?' she asked herself as she saw everyone applauding for her.

Despite losing, the other two congratulated Fiona unlike Amy who just left without another word. Fiona gratefully accepted it and then took a look at the real prize for the night, Van. She just couldn't believe her luck then as the crown was placed on her head by the previous prom queen and a large bouquet of roses were placed in her hands.

The place seemed to get quiet realizing just what it meant to have the two of them win. A dance between enemies. Or at least that what most thought but for two specific people who knew the two, they were happy that it happened this way.

Van kept a placid face as he held out his hand to Fiona. They had their traditional dance to do. He held back his smile as his queen looped her arm with his and the two of them marched off to the dance floor.

Fiona was able to hand over her flowers to Moonbay before she was pulled to the dance floor by an eager Van looking like he despised the idea of it when on the inside he was jumping for joy like a little boy going to the candy store. To have her as his queen was the best he could ever hope for.

Thomas leaned over towards Irvine after taking a look at Van. "Are you sure about that? He doesn't exactly looked too pleased with the idea of dancing with her," Thomas said only to get elbowed in the stomach by Irvine who happened to be watching the scene with interest.

Fiona got as close to Van as she could without raising suspicions and one of her hands entwined with his as the other was placed on his shoulder. She felt his hand on her waist and held back the smile at how they looked right then in front of everyone.

The music started to play and the two started to move in almost perfect sync with each other. "Congratulations," Van muttered so that only she could hear him. His mouth didn't even appear to move as he spoke.

"Congratulations to you as well. It almost seems too good to be real," Fiona said almost the same as Van as if her lips weren't moving. Nobody could tell that they were talking to each other that way. "I don't want this to be a dream. I don't want this to sudden end with me waking up in my own bed," Fiona said quietly as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel.

Van let off a small chuckle at what she said. "I assure you Fiona that this is very real. I'll give you more of this when I can. It feels so good to be together with everyone being able to see it,' he said as his thumb lightly stroked the side of her soft skin. He had to agree that this felt like a dream.

'Please let this dance go on forever. I don't think I can bear to let it end,' she thought giving his hand a squeeze. She felt him return that and smiled up at him slightly. "I love you," she muttered as a small tear fell from her eyes.

"I love too, so much that it hurts. My father will find something Fiona. It's only a matter of time," Van said taking in the addicting smell of Fiona's perfume. He could hear the song slowing down a bit and he held onto Fiona's hand even tighter. He did not want the dance to end.

Fiona was depressed when she heard the song come to an end. It meant leaving Van behind for the rest of the night and each of them going back to their dates. 'Life's unfair,' Fiona thought as she reluctantly pulled away from the man she loved.

Van took a step or two back without turning around and took a quick look at Fiona before turning around and walking towards the doors to try and find Amy before she did anything rash.

Fiona walked back to her seat and collapsed into her chair with a groan. It was becoming more and more painful to see him have to leave her side to walk back to Amy. 'I hope you're right Van,' she thought as she massaged her temple while the rest of the students got back to their dancing.

"You were amazing Fiona!" Moonbay said running up and hugged Fiona to death. "You won, you beat her! You should've seen her running off crying. I never thought I'd be able to see the day that she cried. I guess losing the title was too much for her!" Moonbay said excitedly as she sat in the seat next to Fiona.

"Thanks Moonbay," Fiona said with a smile as she took off the crowned and stared at its beautiful design. "I still can't believe I won. Did she really cry?" Fiona asked not believing it possible but in a way glad. The woman needed to be taken down a notch and hopefully this would do the trick.

"Yeah! She also nearly tripped on her way down the stairs. I took a picture if you want to see it later," Moonbay laughed more as she took a drink that Irvine came back. "So how was the dance?" she asked with a mischievous look on her face.

"Everything I dreamed it would be. I'm afraid that I'll wake up any second. So if I am asleep. Juts try and let me keep it that way," Fiona said and smiled when she heard Moonbay burst out in laughter.

"Good to know," Moonbay said taking a sip of the drink in her hand. :I think someone spiked the punch bowl," she said with a grimace as she placed the drink onto the table. "So after this we're going to head down to the after party!" Moonbay said happily before she was once again pulled to the dance floor by Irvine.

* * *

Fiona took a look around her at the several students that were already at the lovely house that was situated next to a beautiful lake. It looked beautiful being bathed in the moonlight that shown down from the full moon high above their heads. 

She had changed out of the beautiful dress and was dressed in a black skirt and a pink tank top. Her hair was down in her usual style but it seemed a bit curly from being in the style it was for so long.

Irvine and Moonbay walked behind her as she walked up to the house. Thomas wasn't there though because he was unable to come to the after party. He said something about his parents wanting him home by a certain time that night. Fiona remembered Irvine poking fun of Thomas for that.

The rest of the prom had been great for her. She had fun talking with all her friends and even snuck out a few times and was able to talk with Van for a bit. The best thing was that she hadn't heard anything from Amy after the announcement of prom queen.

The strange thing for Fiona was that she hadn't even seen much of Amy after that. Amy popped in every once in a while but she seemed to be avoiding Fiona. Fiona suspected Van had something to do with that. She thought that even if Van tried that Amy would try something but she never did.

Fiona was still trying to grasp the fact that she won it. She never thought that she would even be nominated but she was and she won. She beat her worst rival and got to have that dance with the love of her life. For that, she was the happiest.

"I must say that whoever threw this did a good job," Moonbay muttered looking at all the neat things that the place had. "Who's place is this anyways?" Moonbay asked looking towards the lake.

"Van's," Irvine said making Moonbay look at him in surprise. "His family apparently does have a great deal more money than I ever thought. They have that big mansion, the cabin in the mountains," he said looking at Fiona since she was there. "And apparently this is one that Van's father had built not too long ago. I like this one the best though," Irvine explained as they walked into the house.

Fiona turned and smiled when she saw that Van was already here. It also appeared that he was alone. 'I thought that Hiltz was making Van do whatever his daughter wanted. Something Van wasn't too happy about,' she thought glad that things might not go as both of them thought.

"Hey Van!" Irvine yelled over to him and made Van look in their direction with a grin. "Where's Amy? She feels so bad about losing that she can't show her face?" Irvine felt like he just had to add that in. Wouldn't surprise him either if it was true.

Van shook his head but from what Fiona could see, there was a small chuckle to it. "Not really. She passed out at her house. After losing, she got too into the punch," Van said and he saw Moonbay grimace. "She's was tipsy when we left and started drinking some wine afterwards. Passed out a little while after that," Van said trying to hide his amusement at the situation.

"I thought that drink tasted funny. Someone definitely must've spiked it," Irvine said before him and Moonbay burst out in laughter. "At least we won't have to worry about her ruining the party by picking a fight with Fiona for winning," he said stifling his laughter a bit.

"Yeah I guess," Van said in a bored tone like he usually had to when talking about Fiona. 'Hiltz wasn't too happy about it either. Thought I did it on purpose. I couldn't even find her until we left and even then I couldn't stop her,' he thought with a laugh. 'It works though. He didn't get what he intended. I still don't get why he wanted me to do that though. Unusual for a parent to say that,' Van thought as he took a seat on the couch as Moonbay and Fiona headed off somewhere.

"So how did Hiltz take it when he saw his precious daughter intoxicated and passed out?" Irvine had to ask with a grin. He could just imagine it in his head what happened so he figured that he might as well ask.

"Not too well. I think what pissed him off more was that he couldn't blame me for it. He wanted me to do whatever Amy wanted but since Amy passed out before what he had in mind, it didn't go as planned. Although he did blame me for her losing. What can I do about it? I only had one vote," Van said leaning back in the seat.

Irvine lowered his voice to say what had had to next. "Even then, your vote didn't sway the way he wanted," he said chuckling and he was soon joined by Van as he nodded her head in agreement.

"Guilty as charged on that one. Just don't tell him or I'll never hear the end of it," Van said before he stood up and went to talk to several of the other students who were finally starting to arrive at the place.

"Looks like we'll have our hands full," Irvine said as he took a look at some of the things that some of the people were carrying. Irvine got up and walked towards the window. "Not as many as I thought there'd be. Most look like they want to go at it," Irvine said seeing many people making out outside the house.

"Let them do that someplace else. That's why I locked up all the rooms. My parents wouldn't appreciate everyone going at it in this place. It's still brand new," Van said with a roll of his eyes.

"Probably wouldn't have stopped Amy. Almost everyone knows what she had planned for the night. Good thing she passed out before she got here. What about you and Fiona?" he just couldn't help ask the last part. He'd seen Van and Fiona together at times. It seemed like they were only holding back the inevitable.

Van flushed a deep red at the mention of it. "S-she's not ready I think. Why push for something more in a relationship that I'm more than happy with as it is?' Van asked as he took a few deep breathes. He wasn't feeling too comfortable with the subject since it was Irvine he was talking about it yet.

"Whatever you say," Irvine said standing up. "Hey, do you know where the two ladies went? I can't even remember them walking off," Irvine said as he looked around but couldn't catch sight of them.

"No, I don't think their in the house though. Check outside. They probably want to be out on this lovely night. Check out on the shore. Fiona always liked being in that type of area," Van said standing up as well. "Tell Fiona I said hi since I won't be able to talk to her until these guys leave," Van said exiting in a different direction.

* * *

The party was in full swing only a few minutes after they all arrived. The music was blaring and everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves even more than before now that they didn't have all the formality and rules they had during their prom. They enjoyed it but they still had to follow school rules during it. 

By midnight, people were still fooling around but it was starting to get much smaller as people started passing out from the alcohol that mysteriously made it's way into the party. Van knew that he didn't bring it.

It was nearly one when Van decided to take a quick walk down to the shore. He didn't expect much since nobody seemed to be out there right then. For some reason, he wasn't surprised when he saw a lone figure standing along the shoreline. "Fiona/" he quietly called out.

Fiona turned and gave a bright smile to Van. "Aren't you supposed to be back in there with the rest of the class?" she asked as she curled her feet into the soft sand beneath her. She just sat there and stared out at the reflection of the moon in the lake. "They might come looking for you and see us together," she said with a half smile.

"Most of those drunkards are already passed out or have already left. It's been an eventful night so most are a bit tired already," Van said as he took a seat next to her and interlaced his hand with her.

"Yeah, it has been eventful. Seems like something out of a dream. It's all been perfect. I wouldn't think about changing anything unless I could make you my date," she said squeezing his hand tightly. She had never been so relaxed in her life up till this point. She loved everything about the night.

"I'd say the nights been perfect also my queen," Van said and was glad when she just smiled at his words. He leaned over and laid a kiss on her forehead. "A kiss for my queen," he said taking her mouth with his own after he said it.

"And one for my king," she said kissing him once again. She was just glad that Amy wasn't there to ruin the moment for them. If she was, Van wouldn't be able to get away and would've had to do something that he didn't want. It was another benefit to her ultimate victory over her.

Van then grabbed her and pulled her so that she was closely pressed to his side. He was glad that it was dark enough so that even if someone was awake, they'd never be able to see the two of them. "I don't see how it can get any better," he muttered and he pressed his lips to her head.

Fiona looked at Van as a smile crossed her face. She laid her head down upon his shoulder and closed her eyes in bliss. 'Perfect, that's what this is. Maybe it is the perfect time,' she thought as her cheeks started to burn a little.

Her head lifted off of Van's and her turned his head to look at her and he saw her staring at him. It sent a strange feeling into his stomach to see that look on her. "Fiona?" he asked in a choked whisper trying to figure out if that look meant what he thought it did.

Fiona leaned her head up and captured his lips. 'I think I'm ready for it this time,' she thought to herself sending him her message through the kiss they were engaged in. never before had she thought she'd want something like that so badly. 'It just seems so right,' she thought as she backed away from him.

Van just seemed to know what Fiona was asking from that kiss. He gave her a quizzical look and nearly jumped when he saw her nod her head. "Now?" he asked her really shocked. Then again, she told him once that she wanted her first time to be special. As long as she felt it was the right time, she didn't care.

Fiona blushed as she looked at him. She saw the concern in his eyes. "I-is there a problem with it?" she asked worried that he didn't feel the need for it then. She loved him with all her heart and she actually wanted this.

Van looked deep within Fiona's eyes before he grinned. "No," he said before he captured her lips. He then pulled away and stood up. "Not out here though. Come back to the house. I'll be waiting there for you if you still want to," he said turning and walking back to the house.

Fiona waited only a minute before she got to her feet and basically rushed back to the house. She knew where to go and navigated through the halls until she came upon a room and opened it. No sooner had she done that when she was assaulted by Van's lips.

Without breaking the kiss, Van kicked the door close and locked it before he started leading her towards the bed. He didn't feel any hesitation from the woman. He didn't have any either.

The two of them fell back onto the bed. Van rolled them over so he was on top of her. He stared down at her with a silent question. Fiona's only response was that she caressed his cheek before bring him in for another kiss.

* * *

Irvine and Moonbay walked out onto the beach after all the rest of their fellow classmates were either gone or passed out on the floor or any of the couches. There were even some that had passed out outside. 

Moonbay sat upon a hammock that she set up earlier that night to be able to relax a little. "Hey, where'd Van and Fiona go? I haven't seen either of them for a while," she said laying down and staring up at the stars on the cloudless night.

Irvine did the same as Moonbay but in a separate one and just closed his eyes and relaxed. "No idea. Last time I saw him was just after we got here. The same can be said for you about Fiona. My guess is that they're off somewhere by themselves. They never do get enough time together," he said placing his hand behind his head.

"It's nice knowing they're getting more time together lately. Amy was always bitchy and annoying. It's no wonder they hardly get the time together that they deserve," Moonbay said with a yawn. She'd had so much fun that night that she just felt so worn out by then.

"Better get some sleep Moonbay. We're going to have a lot of drunkards with hangovers to drive home tomorrow," Irvine said before his breathing evened out and he eventually fell asleep.

Moonbay knew that Irvine was right. She looked up at the stars once more. "It feels nice just laying here under the stars. It so peaceful compared to other places," she said before she followed Irvine into the world of dreams.

* * *

The two of them just laid there the next morning. Both were too comfortable to want to wake up that they just remained like that in silence for a long time. Getting up would mean ending the perfect night and going straight back to reality. It would be even more nostalgic than parting after their dance from the night before. 

Van just laid there with his eyes closed with his fingers gently brushing through Fiona's beautiful blonde hair. Her scent was all around him and it made him feel relaxed more than he had ever been in his life. He had no regrets from the previous night and he was sure that Fiona didn't either.

Fiona curled up next to Van with a smile on her face. She was still half asleep but she refused to fully awaken. She was in bliss. Sure she was a little sore but she felt that it was worth it for her first time with Van. It was her first time and it was definitely the best feeling she ever had. "What time is it?" Fiona asked refusing to open her eyes.

"Too early. So just go back to sleep. I don't want this to end," he said kissing the top of her head and then to her lips which she eagerly return with just as much passion. "How you feeling?" he asked her hoping that he hadn't hurt her the night before. It was just as new to him as it was to her.

Fiona just smiled and laid her head on his chest in a more comfortable position. "Sore but otherwise I feel great," she muttered as she grew even more tired. "So let's just stay here for a little while longer," she said in an exhausted voice. "A little longer," she repeated with a bright smile on her face.

Van was all too happy to agree as he kissed her forehead and breathed in her scent once more. This was the type of night that he didn't want to share with anyone other than Fiona. With her, it all came so naturally to him. He was now more determined than ever, if it was even possible, to break from his chains and be with her like this forever.

Fiona smiled more at his lightest touch and buried her head into his chest. She took a deep breath and fell back asleep with one last thought on her mind. 'That truly was the perfect end to a perfect night.'

* * *

I know more people are reading than reviewing so i want some reviews. By the way. I wanted to asked all my faithful reader what they want when this story is finished. I was thinking of a sequel. If you think it's a good idea, then tell me in a review. 


	23. so close yet so far

Van sighed as he leaned back in his seat. The computer was on and several emails were up. All of which were saying the exact same thing from several investigators that he hired to help him out of this mess he was in. Every email basically said they couldn't find anything on Hiltz.

Van groaned as he looked towards his bed which had a sleeping Fiona on it. Ever since prom night, except during school, it was hard to find one of them without the other. Every night one would be at the others house so that they could be together.

To them, everything was perfect. That night was fresh on their minds a week after prom and it made them both feel great knowing that it happen, that each of them were each other's first. They may not have had any times like that since but each was still very content being in the others presence and being able to wake up to each other.

Despite all the happiness that was going through them, Van found himself more scared than ever. With each failed attempt, he feared that any possible future together was slipping away and that someday he may have to end everything with Fiona to keep his family safe from Hiltz. He didn't know what he was going to do if that happened.

He was becoming very reliant on her being there with him. If she was no longer there, he felt that there would be no reason to even leave the house. Even at school, he could at least see her and know that he was in her presence even if he couldn't touch her, talk to her, or even kiss her. Just being able to see her then was enough.

Amy was becoming almost unbearable since prom night to both him and Fiona. Hiltz wasn't any better since his plan fell through the roof. It was all the more reason that he wanted to get out of this, before Hiltz made him do something he would really forget.

Van silently turned off his computer and walked towards the bed and laid down next to Fiona. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and he felt her press herself tightly against him allowing them the best contact that they could in that position. He smiled as he closed his eyes and fell asleep with her in his arms again.

* * *

Hiltz was sitting in his home office looking over several documents when suddenly the door to the room swung open and an irate Amy came storming into the room. It didn't take Hiltz long to know that she was not happy and he did not like it when his little girl was upset. 

He calmly placed his pen down in the middle of putting his signature on a document and looked towards her with his full attention. "Is something wrong?" he asked as calmly as he could.

Amy sat herself on a seat hard making it buckle under her for a second before looking at her father and crossing her arms across her chest. "No! Why would you think something is wrong?" she growled out as she stared at the desk in front of her.

Hiltz just raised an eyebrow. He couldn't help the little bit of amusement he had at her anger. "Because you aren't usually this angry without a reason," he said chuckling a bit and entwined his fingers together. "Is it about Van? I haven't seen him around for a while," he said becoming a bit more serious.

She just looked at him with angry eyes and she knew he got the point. "I've barely seen him all week! Ever since prom, he's been too busy with other things to even bother to talk to me out of school! It's also annoying that he keeps turning me down!" she yelled at him as her foot tapped impatiently on the floor.

Hiltz sighed feeling bad for his daughter. "Even I know that it was your fault on prom night. You shouldn't have drunk so much. I'm sure it would've been easy to get him if you didn't pass out," he stated calmly before picking up his pen to finish putting down his signature.

"I only had two glasses of wine! I don't see how that's drinking much!" she yelled before she took a deep breath trying to calm down. "I can tell that he's losing interest in me. Can't you do anything about it?" she asked in a pleading voice.

"At the moment I don't think I can do anything. It's taking all that I can just making him stay with you. You'll have to do something soon that'll make him stay with you as long as you need," he said not taking his eyes off the papers in front of him this time.

Amy growled and slammed her hand down hard on the papers. "He's been refusing everything I can offer him to make him stay! What's the good of forcing him to stay with me if I can't get anything out of him?" she yelled as her father placed his pen down again and looked at her.

Hiltz just sighed because he knew things weren't going as he originally thought. "Maybe if I had more on his family I'd be able to make him more willing to stay with you but it wasn't easy getting what I needed in the first place," he said remembering all the trouble he had when he first learned of Van and his daughters want for him.

Amy just smirked as an idea came to her. "You can always ask for his help again," she said and saw a sadistic smile crossed his face. She just knew that things were going to be getting better for her if her father had anything to do about it.

"Very well, I'll see what I can do. Just try to keep him in line until I can get something. You have nothing to worry about," he said as a grin crossed his face. He would make sure that his daughter only got the best. Being with Van would get her the best and he would also gain a great deal from it as well.

* * *

Dan Flyheight sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. To him, helping Van was taking up a great deal of his time. He was more than willing to continue because this was a huge problem that involved his family. Even if Van wasn't the one it was happening to then he would still do it to ensure his family's safety. 

He couldn't find anything that would help him though. All the best have tried and couldn't find anything to help his son. He'd need someone from Hiltz's company to admit something but he knew the chances of that happening were very slim.

There was something plaguing his mind though. No matter how many times he thought it over, he didn't know how Hiltz could've gotten the information in the first place. It was very classified stuff that even he didn't know about until it came up. He doubted that Hiltz could've gotten that type of information without being caught.

He'd already found those that were involved in the illegal trading deal that Hiltz held over his son's head and had already fired them since it happened just before Van entered high school and the whole problem started. They were all still there and appeared to be planning to do more. To them, they should just be glad that he hadn't had them arrested.

'How could he possibly of gotten all the information?' he thought to himself before something dawned on him. 'It was given to him by someone working here,' he realized and clenched his hands into fists. He couldn't believe that someone would betray him like this.

Dan stood up and walked over to a filing cabinet. 'It had to be given to him between the time that it happened and also when Hiltz first blackmailed Van. Hiltz had to have had it as backup in case his first plan didn't work. He always had it and then used it when his first plan failed. That gives it about a time span of about a month,' he thought searching through he files desperately.

The doors to his office opened and a head peeked into the room. Derek then walked into the room silently and then walked towards Dan holding a few files. "The document you've been waiting for are here," he said handing a packet over to Dan.

Dan took the files and looked through them quickly before tossing them on his desk. "Thanks," he muttered going back to the filing cabinet. He wanted to find something but it seemed to be missing. "Have you seen the records of all the people that worked nights on the spring of four years ago?" he asked Derek without getting into too much detail.

Derek eyes furrowed together at the question. "They should be in storage downstairs. Why do you want to know about it?" he asked confused as to why he wanted to know something that happened a while ago.

Dan thought for a few quick seconds before coming up with something. He didn't need anyone to know what he was doing because that might cause more troubles for his son if it ended up being leaked to Hiltz. He didn't know who did it and didn't want to take any chances with anyone. "I'm trying to find someone but I don't remember the name of the person. I know that they worked that night."

"I remember that there weren't many of them since I was one of them and that they just worked half the night at the time," Derek explained as he watched Dan still rummaging through the files.

"Thanks, you can go now," Dan said pointing towards the door. He didn't want to show it to Derek but he was becoming a bit suspicious of the man. He was always hungry for more power and that gave him a reason since he was the vice president of the company. Dan figured that he should keep an eye on the man.

When the door closed, Dan closed the filing cabinet and then grabbed his briefcase before he too exited the office. He walked a few steps before eh saw Rosso just about to leave as well. "Rosso," he called stopping the large man.

Rosso turned around and saw that his boss was there. "What can I do for you sir?" he asked as Viola too stopped and stood next to her boyfriend. The two of them were almost inseparable.

"Listen I have a job I want you to do. I want you to keep an eye on Derek. There's something not right going on and he might be the biggest suspect," Dan explained hoping that Rosso would be willing to help. He also knew that it wouldn't be too suspicious since Rosso would be here anyways.

Rosso nodded his head without a second thought. He owed his freedom to Dan. He was once imprisoned under false charges and Dan helped bail him out and then gave him a job. It was the least he could do to help repay his hospitality. "Of course sir," he said before turning and leaving.

Dan sighed as he followed after them into the elevator. "You don't have to do much. Just keep an eye on him when he's in the building. Record where he goes and then later go there as well and get a report of his activities," Dan continued to explain knowing that Rosso could easily use the surveillance cameras without anyone being suspicious of it.

"That won't be a problem. I'll get right on it tomorrow as well as the rest of my responsibilities as the security chief," he said as they landed on the bottom floor and they all got off and headed in different directions.

Dan knew that if he could find the person responsible, then he might just be able to get what he needed to free his son. Derek was his lead suspect so he had to keep an eye on the man since night was the only time he could get in and get such confidential files without being caught especially if done when the security guard's shift changes. Dan wasn't there since he was working elsewhere and that would only make things easier to get.

He knew that Derek would just love to get his job. He figured that he had a reason to help Hiltz. Especially if Hiltz made him a promise that if he got something, that he would be put in charge if everything went according to plan.

If Hiltz had his way and Van was to marry Amy, then it would make and child conceived out of it the rightful heir to the place. Hiltz would have access to the child and could manipulate it to his bidding possibly even handing over all control of the company to Hiltz. It would take a while but he also knew that neither Van nor his father would be willing to give control of it freely.

To Dan, it was all just a theory but it was the best that he could think of. He had no proof; therefore he could not do anything. If he had something than he could get answers out of the one responsible.

Hiltz was never a person without a backup plan and with his already used; he would need a new one. So he would go for more information which meant that the spy may most likely try again. But as stated before, it was just an assumption and he had no evidence that it would actually happen so he had to just wait for some sort of evidence to come up.

* * *

Van groaned as he leaned up against a wall and watched all the students walking around. 'It should be illegal to be happy this early in the morning,' he thought but was only really made that he wouldn't be able to get close to Fiona while they were at school. 

Everyone was excited because only three weeks after prom was graduation, at least in their school. It had been a week since then and that meant that they only had two grueling agonizing weeks of school left before they would be free from the hellhole they called high school. Classes may be over a week from then but then there are the extremely boring finals they had to take.

Van suddenly felt hands cover his eyes and knew exactly who it was. "Hey there Amy," he said and heard her pout from behind him before she suddenly pulled him into an empty classroom.

He didn't know how it happened but he was the one that had her pressed against the walls of the room. He wasn't comfortable with the position but he had to continue to play by their games. He hoped it wouldn't be for much longer though. His father did mention that he may be on to something but Van wasn't getting his hopes up on anything since everything seems to get turned around again if he even gets close to his freedom.

Amy quickly brought herself in for a harsh kiss that Van was trying to return enough so that she wouldn't get suspicious. It was a painful thing to do. He just hoped that Fiona wouldn't end up seeing any of it.

The bell suddenly rang and Van pulled away thankful for the excuse to end her make out session. He pulled away but she just shook her head and grabbed him and pushed him onto a desk where she climbed on top of him. "I don't think so," she said going down for another kiss.

Van pushed her off but she seemed to be very persistent. "We need to get going or we'll be late and I don't think I can afford many more of those even if school is ending soon," an annoyed Van said as he finally managed to get to his feet.

"Damn it Van! Why is it that you keep rejecting me? Don't you love me?" She asked and she saw him just nod his head but she didn't need to know that it was only to appease her. "Then why is it that you don't seem to want to be with me anymore?" she yelled at him as he walked to the door.

"It's not that, it's just that you always seem to want to try it in places that I don't want to do it in. I'd rather it be special and not just for the heck of it. It may be strange but I'm not like others who just do it for no special reason," he said before opening the door and walking out.

Amy's cheeks puffed out in annoyance. Sometimes she hated how her boyfriend always seemed to be a noble person. It always meant that she wouldn't be able to get what she truly wanted from him.

She never mentioned it to her father but she wanted Van not just for business purposes. That was a bonus now. She wanted a lot from him but she knew that he was drifting away from her. 'Not if I have anything to say about it,' she thought as she left the room and ran after him.

"Hey Van!" she yelled out causing him to stop and turn towards her. "I got an acceptance letter yesterday from the college I wanted to go to. Are you going there as well?" she asked him as she dug through her backpack for her acceptance letter.

'That's awfully far away and I didn't get accepted there. However I did get accepted to one that relatively close by and can come home every once in a while," Van explained glad for the excuse to get away from her for a while. He knew she wouldn't give up on them though and would always come every week on her father's private plane just to see him.

"Oh really? Let me see," she said as she took the letter from him as he handed it to her. "That's no problem, I can always just transfer there because I got accepted there as well," she said happily but she didn't see the disheartened face of Van. He hoped that he would get accepted that him and Fiona could go to without Amy. Both him and Fiona were accepted but now Amy would be going as well.

He was glad when he got into the classroom because the bell rang just then meaning that he didn't have to continue this conversation with her. Maybe something would happen and he wouldn't have to worry about her being there.

* * *

Fiona wasn't in a very pleasant mood that day. She came to school and saw get dragged into a classroom so she basically knew exactly what Amy was up to. After their night together, it was almost unbearable to know that Amy was still after Van in a way that made her want to throw up. 

The night had been beyond perfect for her and she didn't regret allowing her first to be with Van then. They didn't even have to worry about Amy coming and ruining it at any moment since both knew she was at her home passed out because of alcohol.

By the looks of the past few days, she was trying to make up for her failed attempt on prom night by getting Van alone every chance she could get while they were at school. Fiona didn't how it could be special to do it at school though.

"Oh cheer up Fiona. We both know that he won't let it get any farther than he has to. Just don't think too much on it and you'll make it through the day," Moonbay said trying to cheer up her friend.

"It's just starting to hurt way too much to see the two of them together and not be able to do a thing to stop it," Fiona said without giving specifics as to why it hurt more than ever. Moonbay didn't know what happened between her and Van and she didn't plan to tell her unless it was necessary.

"That boys too much in love with you Fiona. At least let that cheer you up a bit. He wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt you," Moonbay said not liking seeing her friend jealous of something that she shouldn't be. It seemed illogical that Fiona should be jealous of Amy when she has had more than Amy ever would.

Fiona didn't respond as they entered the classroom and she took her seat next to Irvine since he was already there and waiting for them. She was glad to have friends such as these. All of them were going to the same college and with any luck there won't be any Amy there. Maybe that would mean that she could be with Van freely.

Fiona saw Van and Amy walked into the room just as the bell rang and she saw an aggravated look on Van's face. She wished she could do something about it but she knew it was hopeless in their predicament.

She watched Van and didn't even seem to care if anyone noticed her. She'd hate to be here if it meant that she couldn't even look at her beloved. 'Oh Van. You don't know how much this hurts me,' she thought sadly as she laid her head on the desk waiting for the teacher to finish attendance.

Van saw that almost as soon as he entered the room that Fiona was upset. Up until that day since prom, he had yet to see her upset and it hurt him. He wished there was something that he could do to put a smile back on her face and maybe also tell her of all the other stuff whether it was bad or good.

Van suddenly got an idea and went to grab some paper from his backpack to write a letter but he noticed that Amy turned her attention to him again and knew that he wouldn't be able to get away with writing it to Fiona with Amy watching.

Amy then looked back at Fiona with a glare. "I still can't believe she stole my rightful title. It's an insult to my family. My mother was prom queen, and my father was valedictorian of his class and I failed at getting both titles. It's an insult," she grumbled to Van. "Why didn't you complain about it?" she asked turning her glare towards him.

"It wouldn't make either you or me look very good in the eyes of the class that made the elections from prom king and queen. I think I did you a favor but I think you could've been a little more graceful about it instead of running away in tears," Van said as calmly as he could. He would never complain about Fiona being made prom queen.

"I don't care about that! She stole what rightfully belonged to me and I just can't forgive that!" Amy yelled attracting the attention of quite a few students who gave her looks that clearly said that they didn't approve of her soreness at losing.

"And yet look at how they reacted to that. Just pretend like it doesn't bug you. The more you do that, the less popular you became. Your attitude is what they probably based their vote on. Just try not to look angry and they might go back to you," Van said before resting his head on the desk and closing his eyes.

Amy was angry at Van for saying such a thing to her but she knew that even her own father would say the same thing to her. He always did say she needed to control her temper a little more but never did anything more than that. She could always get away with anything when it came to her father.

'Everything in my life was going perfectly before she came,' Amy thought angrily in her mind. She wished for nothing more than for Fiona yo just drop of the face of the planet. It would save her a lot of unnecessary trouble.

In the back of the class, Fiona was just writing a few things in a notebook when Moonbay looked over and at the paper. "What's this? Some sort of speech?" she asked picking it up and reading some of the lines.

Fiona carefully took it back and continued to write in it. "Yeah, the principal approached me yesterday telling me that I was the valedictorian and that I needed to write a speech for graduation, so that's what I'm doing," Fiona said remembering that Amy heard and made another fuss. The woman was too conceited for her own good.

Moonbay suddenly grinned as she noticed a few references to Fiona's secret life in it. She guessed that Fiona just put that in because she felt like she would go crazy since she couldn't say anything about her love for Van. Making a few references but not enough to tell the truth would help relieve that stress.

She continued to read some of it and actually liked what she was reading. Fiona always did have a thing for words. "I'm sure it'll be a hit for the rest of the class when you read it," she said with a smile as she straightened up in her seat. "Why are you writing it now? You still have two weeks."

Fiona looked up from it and smiled at Moonbay. "It would be better to finish it now and work to perfect what I have instead of waiting till the last minute and having a sloppy speech," Fiona said with a small chuckle.

"People will like what you say anyways so does it really matter?" Moonbay asked and couldn't help but chuckle. She knew of most of the male population in the school having some sort of liking for her. Most probably wanted to date her.

"I somehow doubt that. I think I just about got the rough draft done though," Fiona said scribbling down a few more lines before she put it back into her backpack just as the bell rang for first bell. Fiona just got up and followed Moonbay out the door ignoring the glares that she was getting from Amy.

* * *

Van was gone from the school at the end of the week long before Amy could even realize where he was. It had been all that he could do to get away from her and sped his time with Fiona. He hadn't been so lucky all week to get away but he was determined to see her today. 

School was done for him. Sure he had a few tests the next week but that meant that he didn't have to go to school until the time of the tests. That was the only good thing about the week of finals. If you don't have a test, you didn't have to come. It meant that he could relax with Fiona if Amy decided not to interrupt.

Van ran into his house when he reached it and didn't spend too much time before he tried to run out of it before Amy could call. He made sure to 'accidentally' leave his cell phone there so that she wouldn't be able to call. It was his time to be with Fiona.

Van heard the phone in the house ring and did his best to get out quickly. He had this instinct at knowing that it was Amy who was calling. He heard his mother pick up the phone and hoped she wouldn't give him away. he knew he could trust her though.

"Hello?" she asked as she put the phone to her ear. She wasn't very pleased to hear the voice that seemed to be calling constantly in the past few days. She hated the entire family for putting her own family through all the trouble they've been going through.

"Hello Mrs. Flyheight," Amy said and a very pissed off look crossed Van's mother face at her voice. Amy seemed to be trying something and she didn't like it. "Is Van there? He disappeared after school," she said in what sounded like a rather urgent voice.

Julie looked towards her son as he attempted to escape without having to put up with the call so that he could get to Fiona. "I'm sorry but his father just dragged him away for some important business. I'm afraid that they won't be home for the rest of the night," she said knowing that Amy didn't need to know that Van's father left on important business out of town earlier that day.

He just took some time off of work to go to another city to check out something. He wouldn't be back till just before Van graduates but he would be there in time to see it. That is if things go as planned.

She saw Van give a big sigh of relief and then she waved him off and he was more than eager to get out of there. "You'll just have to call back some other time if you're looking for him. She saw his cell phone lying on the table. "Damn it! He forgot his cell phone again!" she said trying to hold back the laugh because she knew that Amy heard.

Amy groaned in annoyance because it seemed that Van was doing everything he could to get away from her these past few days. "Fine then!" she yelled as she slammed her end of the phone down ending the call.

Julie just chuckle before carefully setting the phone down. She hoped that Dan's business went well. It was to a place that Hiltz's business used to be before it moved here. If anything, he'd be able to find something there. At least that's what she hoped. This was something serious for his business and his family so he knew that he needed to do it not just for Van.

* * *

"Know what I think Fiona, we should just send a hit man after her. It will save everyone a great deal of trouble if she was gone," Moonbay joked around. It wasn't meant to be taken seriously but just something to help lighten the mood a little because of the slow week. 

Fiona knew Moonbay was just getting into what her favorite pastime, thinking of ways to get rid of Amy without getting in trouble for it. It was always fun to be able to see who could come up with the best idea between the two of them. It was all they could really do to vent their frustration for her.

"Oh wait! How about this! We can use an icicle on a hot day. The weapon will melt and there won't be anything to lead it back to us," Moonbay said excitedly which Fiona also couldn't help but laugh as well.

Fiona wracked her brain before she remembered something that she saw on TV a few weeks before. "We could always just make her run around a lot before killing her. That'll make the time of death be at a time where we'll have an alibi," Fiona said with a small smile which caused Moonbay to burst out in laughter.

"Fiona! I didn't know you had such a devious side to you!" Moonbay said with a burst of laughter. "I'll be sure to come to you if I ever decide to actually pull these things off," she said although she knew she never actually would. She wasn't a murderer and as much as she hated Amy, she would sully her hands with Amy's disgusting blood.

Fiona just giggled as the two of them walked to her door and went inside. Fiona immediately saw Van and quickly burst in and flung herself into his arms which he seemed to gladly receive. 'Finally,' she thought thinking how it was a long week in which Van couldn't seem to escape from Amy.

"Hey there," Van said burying his face in her hair and inhaling the sweet scent that he had come to know as belonging to Fiona. "Sorry things have been so hectic this week. I had to race out of school and ignore the phone at my house so that I could get over here," he said pulling back a little and then kissing her.

Moonbay cleared her throat. "I can see that the two of you want to be left alone so I'll just be going," she said rushing out of the house. She knew they were barely able to go through the school day without being with each other. They needed the time together more than anyone.

Fiona looked around and noticed that Van seemed to be the only one in the house. "Where's my mom, why isn't she here?" she asked as they walked over to the sofa and sat down with Van pulling Fiona into his lap.

Van reached up and stroked her cheek. "She was here when I first got here but said that she had other things to do and to tell you that she won't be back till late tonight," he said before capturing her lips once more.

Fiona moaned into the kiss as she eagerly kissed back. Ever since that night, she felt herself yearning Van again. She never gave voice to it though so they continued on with what they were doing. She didn't have to worry about getting pregnant right then either because after far too many close calls, she decided to go on the pill just to be safe.

Van pulled away and saw the flushed look and the desire that clouded Fiona's face. "Your room?" he asked trying to catch his breath. He just saw her nod eagerly before he picked her up and headed towards her room. She could've said no to him and he still would've been glad to just sit there with her in his arms.

* * *

Dan Flyheight drove along a peaceful looking street while looking for a specific house that was listed on a piece of paper. He hoped that the person there would be willing to give him some answers as to why everything happened the way it did. 

He finally found the house he was looking for and walked up to the door. He was hesitant for a second before he knocked on the door. He waited patiently for a few seconds before it was opened and an elderly lady peeked her head out. "Excuse me ma'am, but I was wondering if there was a Mr. Frank Cole here," Dan said as politely as he could.

The woman smiled and opened the door all the way. "Why yes he is. Please come in and make yourself comfortable, I will go and get him," she said as the two of them walked into the house and Dan took a seat as she walked into a different room.

The man that Dan was looking for was an old employee that happened to be working at the time in question. Dan had quite a few encounters with the man and knew that he was the type who could be trusted. He hoped that he had answers that would narrow down the time frame.

A few seconds later, a rather fat man came walking into the room and then grinned when he saw who it was. Dan! It's so good to see you. To what do I owe this honor? Better not be trying to get me back because you know I'm retired," he said in a joking manner as he shook Dan's hand.

"Actually I came here because I had a few questions that I wanted to ask you," Dan said as the large man took a seat across from Dan. The woman came back into the room and poured the two men some tea. "Thank you," Dan said as he took a quick sip of the hot tea before he turned back to Frank. "I was curious if she remember anything between April and May of four years ago," Dan said as he crossed his hands in front of him.

"Four years ago eh?" Frank asked as he rubbed his chin thinking hard back to the time he worked just before he retired. "I think I do, what is it that you want to know?" he asked curiously.

Dan studied him for a second before he spoke. "Do you remember ever seeing Hiltz come into the build and do anything suspicious?" Dan asked but he just saw Frank shake his head no. "Are you sure?" Dan asked with a helpless look on his face.

"Positive. I hate the son of a bitch and I would've thrown him out if I ever saw him doing anything close to suspicious in the building. It was around that time that he did seem to take an interest in several of the night shift workers," Frank said as he leaned back and crossed his arms.

Dan picked up his tea and took another sip of it before placing it back down. "Do you know what he was up to? Whether he was offering anything to some of the workers?" Dan asked patiently.

"From what I heard, he offered several of them a job with him. Probably had to do with getting information on his biggest rival. I don't remember any of them taking the offer though," Frank said rubbing his chin as if in deep thought. "Oh yeah, I remember there also being several meeting with Derek as well," he said after thinking about it for a while.

This was exactly what Dan was looking for. "Good, do you have any idea what they were about? Do you remember if anything was exchanged in them?" Dan asked eagerly thinking he'll get some answer.

"'fraid not. There was a lot of arguing between the two of them. I always just assumed that Hiltz thought he was in charge and was attempting to take over the company through him. Everyone knows that Hiltz has been after your company for years. Derek was never really the same after those," Frank said not seeming to find anything suspicious in Derek.

Dan knew that it wasn't enough evidence. It could be just as Frank said and that it was just an argument between him and Hiltz about control of the company. Hiltz would want it but Derek wouldn't have the resources to give it to him.

Dan suddenly stood up hearing enough. "Thank you for this chat. I appreciate you take the time to talk to me," Dan said finishing up his tea and then started to walk to the door. "If you remember anything suspicious happening than please call me and tell me," Dan said shaking hands with the man before leaving with more questions than when he came in.

'Hiltz was in contact with several people there. It was definitely through one of them that Hiltz got his information from. I just wish that I knew who it was. Derek's meetings with Hiltz were definitely new. He never told me about them,' Dan thought before getting in his car and driving away.

Dan picked up a list and took another quick look at it. There were several more names of people on it that he needed to talk to. Almost all of the people that worked then had retired or moved onto a different job. None of the jobs seemed to have anything to do with Hiltz though.

'This is going to take a while,' Dan thought since the next closest one would probably take an hour to get to and there were more people on the list than he originally thought. He hoped some of them would have some answers.

* * *

Van stared up at the ceiling as Fiona laid there in his arms. Both of them were once again fully dressed although Van would rather have it that they remained nude but then again, he didn't want to take the chance of her mother coming home and seeing them in such a position. 

Fiona never ceased to amaze him. Making love to her was unlike anything he had ever felt before. He didn't know he could feel that much passion being that close and attached to Fiona. He knew sex was pleasurable but it was more than that when he had it with Fiona.

"Hey Fiona," Van said causing her to open her eyes and look at him. "How about we go out somewhere tonight? Just the two of us?" Van asked her as he stared into the crimson eyes which he loved so much.

Fiona looked at him for a second. "Are you sure Van? What if we get caught?" Fiona asked in a worried tone before she snuggled up to his chest. "I wouldn't mind just staying here and watching a movie with you if that's ok," she said closing her eyes as she listened to the sound of his heart in his chest.

"No Fiona," he said making her sit up on her bed. "I actually want to do something with you out of the house. Go on a date like normal couples do. We rarely get to do that because we're always afraid of being caught," Van said in a frustrated tone. He wanted to be a normal couple with Fiona but they couldn't seem to be one.

Fiona suddenly giggled. "Van I hate to tell you this but we're not what you call a normal couple. Maybe it's what makes our relationship special that I like the most about it," Fiona said kissing his cheek. "Fine. Let me just go get a quick shower and we'll go. You could use one too," she said before something came to mind. "Alone. We'll never get clean if we have one together," she said seeing the grin on Van's face.

Van gave a pitiful frown but she was being stubborn and he had no other choice but to comply. So while Fiona went to take her shower, Van just went down and got a quick bite to eat. The house was still empty of people so he didn't know what else to do as he waited since the Lynette's only had one shower.

After what seemed like an hour, which it normally was when Fiona took a shower, Fiona finally came out of it and Van went to take a quick one as well. He made his quick and grabbed a fresh pair of clothes that he normally leaves at Fiona's for if he ever stayed over which was becoming quite frequently lately.

"So where are we going to Van?" Fiona asked when she saw him pulling his shirt over his head. She had to admit that she definitely liked the sight of him without a short on. She just shook her head and looked into his eyes.

"I was thinking we could grab a bite to eat and then maybe we can head to the movies. I know the perfect places we can go as well where we won't be caught," he thought with a smile as he grabbed her hand and pulled her to his car which was parked in the garage.

The place that they stopped at wasn't really all that romantic. They merely went through the drive through of a fast food restaurant but Van then drove a small lake which was in the middle of the town and they ate while they watched the sun beginning to set.

Then the two of them went to a movie theater. Van pulled up to him and was about to walk up when he saw Fiona duck down. He was confused but then he realized why when he saw a yellow convertible pull into the parking lot. He freaked because he knew it was Amy.

Amy parked her car and got out before she took notice of Van. "Van!" she said happily as she walked over and wrapped her arm around his. "What are you doing here? Your mother said you were with your father," she said looking towards his car and noticed that his father wasn't there.

Van thought for some sort of excuse to get him out of this. This was supposed to be his and Fiona's time alone. "I-I am. I think I might of forgotten something here when I came here with Irvine a yesterday for that new action movie. I just hope that they didn't lose it. I just came to see if I might've lost it here," he said walking to the door with her following behind him.

The two of them walked into the theater with Van trying to act as casual as he possibly could. "So what are you doing here? Ok stupid question," he said and she giggled at it. "I'm not staying if that's what you're thinking. I have to meet up with my dad again when I find it."

Amy's cheeks puffed in annoyance. "Oh come on Van. I'm sure that your father can wait. We haven't spent much time together lately. This'll be a good time to go out," she said with a bright smile.

Van just shook his head no. "I'm in a really big hurry, I'm sorry but I really have to get going once I'm done with my business," he said walking up to a desk and asking if they found anything even though he knew that they didn't. It was just to make it look more realistic.

Van was lucky because they allowed him to go into the theater to look and Van did that and walked to the area of seating he was always in when he went to the theaters. He pretended to look around before standing up after a while looking annoyed. "Damn it! It's not here!" he growled out angrily. "Maybe I lost it somewhere else," he said heading to the exit.

"Van, are you sure that you don't want to stay?" she asked with her best pout hoping that he would be willing to stay after he saw that. "It's just no fun to go to the movies alone," she said as they walked out of the movie theater and towards his car.

Van sighed and hung his head. "I wish that could but my father's been working me to the bone the past few days. I'll try to make it up to you when I can," he said before he did something he didn't want to and kissed her goodbye before he got in his car and was about to drive away.

Amy suddenly stepped next to the car and leaned down. "Hey Van that reminds me. I want you to come over to my house tomorrow. We'll have dinner with my family. That's the perfect way that you can make it up to me."

Van mentally groaned. 'Do I have to? How the hell do I keep getting myself into these sort of situations?' he asked himself before forcing a smile on his face. "Ok then, I'll be there," he said before slowly pulling his car out as she backed away. "damn it!" he yelled in frustration at having to go there now.

Fiona sighed sadly as she crawled back to the front seat. She crawled into the back in case Amy ended up getting in anyways. She wasn't so lucky though since even though she wasn't caught, she still had to watch the horrible sight of Van kissing Amy. "I see you managed to get away. Too bad you have to go over to her house tomorrow. I know how much you hate it," she mumbled as she buckled up her seatbelt.

Van looked at Fiona sadly. "Sorry you had to see that but I really had no other choice. She would've been suspicious if I didn't," Van said as he came to a stop at a light. "I'm sorry," he said looking at her with sad eyes.

What surprised Van was when Fiona leaned over and kissed him instead of yell at him. She pulled back and looked into the eyes of the man she loved. "At least I know I can get that reaction out of you from just a kiss. Bet she couldn't," she said with a small smile.

Van couldn't help but laugh at that. "It feels much better to kiss you so of course. You're the best kiss I have or will ever have," Van said going when the light finally turned green. "So where to now? I don't think we'll be able to go to that theater," he said wanting to know what she wanted to do.

Fiona smiled a bright smile. "I say we just go back to my house and pop a movie in. We have all we need for a good movie night there," she said and she was glad when she saw him just nod his head.

The two of them pulled into her driveway and saw that her mother was there already. They got out and walked into the house. They merely gave Tricia a quick hello before they headed up to Fiona's room.

"Why don't you pick out the movie Fiona and I'll go get us some popcorn," he said leaving the room and heading into the kitchen. Fiona's mother was busy so she didn't bother him but she did say hello again before going back to her work.

When the popcorn was done, Van took it back upstairs and crawled into the bed next to Fiona who held onto him as the movie started and they just sat and watched while cuddling up to each other. It didn't take long before the two of them fell asleep like that.

About an hour after that, Fiona's mother came into the room and saw her daughter and her boyfriend like that and smiled. She quietly walked over and covered both of them up with a blanket before turning off the movie and the lights and leaving the room.

* * *

Rosso walked all around setting things up for a plan he concocted to fulfill Dan's wish. He was setting up several of his own camera's, with permission from Dan, all over the records room in case someone decided to get something that they aren't authorized to get. 

"I'm all done Rosso," Viola said walking over. She'd agreed to help Rosso do this because she liked this job and she didn't want anything to happen that could jeopardize it, such stuff including Hiltz taking over through Van.

"Thanks Viola. You didn't have to help me though," he said but he saw her just shrug her shoulders as if it was nothing for her to help her. "All we can do is wait and see what happens next," Rosso said as the two of them left the room and headed towards the elevator.

The elevator came to a stop and the two walked in to see the man that Dan had requested them to keep an eye on, Derek. Rosso pushed the button to the top floor and the elevator started up again. It was silent in the elevator for a while as no one spoke a word to each other.

Rosso finally looked towards the smaller yet older man and kept a serious look on his face. "Excuse me sir, but do you know where Mr. Flyheight might be?" Rosso asked just to try and get a better feel for this man. Plus that and he wanted to know why Dan wasn't here for this.

Derek looked towards Rosso with a calm look on his face. "He is away on business. He'll be gone all week. He should be back before next Saturday though," Derek said before the elevator came to a stop on the floor and all three of them walked out and went to where they belonged.

Rosso took a seat in front of several monitors in an area that was off to the side. It wasn't normally there but Rosso had it set up so that he'd be able to protect Dan better if need be, and also so that he could be closer to Viola. Dan didn't have a problem with it so there was one set up there. Dan actually welcomed all the extra protection in fact, he was the one who originally suggested it. There was more than one of these stations so it was even better security.

He was just getting comfortable when the door to Derek's office was opened and the man came walking out looking like he was ready to go home. "Good night to the both of you," he said waving at them like he did every night and the walked towards the elevator with a smile on his face.

Once he was in it, Rosso pulled something out from his pocket and plugged it into the computer which immediately brought up several new pictures. "That's about all that we could do for the night. We should get going as well. There's no proof that anything will happen tonight," Rosso said and Viola nodded as well and they packed up as the new shift arrived.

* * *

"Boy that sucks," Irvine said seriously as Van was getting ready for this so unwanted dinner with Amy and her family. "I wonder if you'll survive it. It's like whenever you go over there something bad always happens," Irvine said recalling all the experiences that Van told him about. 

"Shut up or you'll jinx me!" Van growled as he searched for his watch. "You're probably right though. I have this bad feeling about something and it isn't getting any better," Van sighed as he grabbed his car keys and his wallet.

"Well I wish you luck and don't do anything there that would get you in trouble with her father," Irvine said seriously as the two of them walked outside to the own cars. Van's this brand new car and Irvine's this really old one.

Irvine pulled out of the driveway first and headed home but Van just stayed still for a few seconds before he followed suit and drove in the direction that he had learned all too well in the past few years. He just hoped his bad feeling was wrong and that he wouldn't have to do anything else that Hiltz wanted.

Van was intentionally driving slower than usual because he definitely wasn't looking forward to this visit. He was hoping that he could prolong getting there so that he'd have to spend less time there. He just wasn't comfortable when she was around anyone from Amy's family.

Unfortunately for Van, he got there faster than he wished. He just sat in his car for what seemed like a few good minutes and stared up at the mansion that towered before him. He got out of the car and headed towards the door slowly.

He didn't even reach it before the door was suddenly flung open and Amy bolted out and latched herself to Van. "It's about time you got there. I was beginning to think that you weren't going to show up," she said as she dragged a reluctant Van into the mansion.

"Of course not. Why would I leave you hanging like that? I would at least call first if I wasn't planning to come," Van said put a smile on his face. 'Not like I had a choice whether to come or not,' he grumbled in his mind as he followed her into the dining room where her mother was already waiting.

Van looked around the room and didn't see any sign of Hiltz anywhere. He was hoping that Hiltz wouldn't be there today. 'Maybe he got hit by a car,' Van thought with a grin before he turned to Amy. "Where's your father?" he asked her trying to at least sound curious.

Amy turned to him with a bright smile. "Oh he has some business to take care of. He'll be here once he's done," she said basically pushing him onto a seat and then taking the seat next to it and pushing it over so that she was so close that there was contact between her and Van.

"You're looking good as usual Van," the monotonous voice of Amy's mother said from the other side of the table. It really freaked him out every time he came in contact with her. Her skin with deathly pale like she hadn't seen the sun in years. She also didn't show any emotions unless she was drunk. It happened often but Van always came into contact with her when she was sober.

"Um… thank you Mrs. Jewel," Van said rubbing the back of his head. He never knew of what to say when he was around them. 'Just eat and get out of here before Hiltz come back,' his brain instructed him as he started to eat his food fast but not fast enough to draw attention to himself.

Amy's mother looked at Van with her serious, dull brown eyes. He shivered at her look but didn't say anything so that he didn't insult Amy. "It looks really good Mrs. Jewel," Van said sticking with how he always called her. The only way she wished to be called. Fiona's mother always seemed to be insistent that he call her mom which most of the time he was happy to do.

Van was just about finished with his meal when all three of the occupants heard the door to the mansion open and an, "I'm home!" yelled from the man which he hated more than life itself.

"Oh good! Daddy's here!" Amy said as she rushed out of the room to great her father. "Hey daddy," she said hugging him before stepping away. "Van's here for dinner," she said and she saw a victorious look in his eyes. She just knew that things were going to get good.

"That's good to hear. I haven't seen him for a while," Hiltz said as he set his stuff down and walked into the dining room where he saw his wife and Van sitting patiently with all their food gone. "You should've waited for me before eating," he said although you could tell that there was a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Well we weren't sure when you were going to be home. That meeting did just come up on such short notice," Amy said taking her seat next to Van again. "Van was just so eager to come though so we just decided to eat and then save you some for when you came home," Amy said with a happy smile on her face.

"Yeah," Van said but there was a hint of sarcasm in his voice. He was lucky that there wasn't anyone that heard it though. "Anyways, thanks for the meal but I better get going," Van said as he got up and started to walk towards the door.

Amy suddenly rushed up to Van and grabbed him on the arm. "You're leaving?" she asked and he just nodded his head. "But you just got here. Why do you need to leave so soon?" she asked with a hint of pleading in her voice. 'You can't leave yet, the fun is only beginning.'

"Yes Van, please stay," Hiltz said with a smirk on his face. "Actually I need to talk to you," he said walking past Van and motioning him to come. He didn't stop walking until he was in his study.

'Dooms day,' Van thought because that never meant any good when Hiltz wanted to talk to him alone. Van followed knowing that it was pointless to argue with the man. "What did you want to talk to me about?" Van asked in a monotonous tone hoping to hide his fear from Hiltz.

"Your father sure seems to be taking an interest in the past of his company Van. He wouldn't happen to know anything would he?" Hiltz asked with fire in his eyes. He gave a look that was just daring Van to lie to him.

"No. I haven't said a word about it to him and I've tried my best to act as normal as possible around him," Van said and in reality, he wasn't lying. Fiona told his father and he's always been able to act naturally around his father. "I have no clue as to why he's taken such an interest in his past."

Hiltz looked into Van's eyes and didn't seem to detect any hint of a lie in them so he just smiled and straightened up. He stood up and started to walk towards Van. "There's one other thing that I wanted to talk about," he said before he suddenly grabbed Van and slammed him against a wall. "I don't know what you're getting at Van but I don't appreciate it!" he growled out as his eyes glazed over with hatred.

Van struggled just to breath because of the position they were in. "I…I don't know what you're talking about. What did I do?" Van managed to gasp out since Hiltz hand grabbed his throat after he slammed him against the wall.

"Do not give me that crap Van Flyheight. I know all about that whore of yours. What was her name… oh yes, Fiona Lynette," he said and he saw Van's eyes widen in surprise that he knew of Fiona. "I don't take very kindly to people cheating on my daughter!" he said angrily clenching Van's throat a little more.

He suddenly threw Van onto the ground and turned to him with just as much anger in his eyes. "You obviously don't care enough about your family to stick to our original plan," he said as he advanced on Van.

Van watched him advance with worry. Not just for himself but for Fiona. He never wanted to get her involved like this. He wanted to know how Hiltz knew of Fiona in the first place. Van thought that the two of them were careful not to get caught.

"Yes I know of her. I have my sources. I know how much my daughter hates her. You're just lucky that she doesn't know about any of it!" Hiltz said with venom in his voice and for the first time in the time he knew Van, he was actually being honest to the young man. He hadn't told his daughter about any of the things Van did behind her back.

Van crawled back a few steps while rubbing his throat. "Don't you dare do anything to her!" Van managed to find his courage and pushed himself back to his feet. He would do anything to protect Fiona even if he was put in danger for it.

"I don't intend to… for now. Our deal has changed Van. It obviously wasn't good enough for you to follow," Hiltz said as he walked behind his desk and took his seat behind the desk of his study. "You're going to marry Amy Van," he said with a smirk turning on the corner of his mouth.

'No!' Van screamed in his mind. He didn't want to marry Amy. He had his heart set on eventually marrying Fiona. "You can't make me do that!" Van growled out as he looked towards the ground while his fists clenched at his side.

Hiltz just seemed to find that annoying. "I think that I can. Now you will do as I say or I will release these," he said throwing an envelope towards Van. He saw Van pick it up and read it with a smirk on his face. "This added on to the stuff from before will not only make your father lose everything, but could very well send him to jail! Now you will marry Amy and I won't release those but you are to stay away from your whore! If you chose not to, then I will make sure that I not only ruin your family, but hers as well!" he said with a malicious sneer crossing his face.

Van collapsed onto the ground. With this, he had just lost every last ounce of freedom that he had. He couldn't even see Fiona anymore because of that bastard. She was one of the few things that were keeping him sane, how could he go on without even being able to be close to her. 'What am I going to do?'

* * *

The story is coming to an end soon and I want at least 300 reviews before I start writting the sequel. If I get more reviews than that, then I'll write the new story even faster. 


	24. end of pain

For days, Van did his best to ignore Fiona but he knew that it was almost pointless to do so. No matter what Hiltz did, Van still had this longing in his heart for Fiona that only being with her could possible fulfill.

Life was never easy for him. First he had to give up his freedom to be Amy's boyfriend just so that he could protect his family. Then a few months later, the woman of his dreams comes into his life. When he has the woman of his dreams, he then has to give her up to protect her and their two families.

Van could tell that Fiona was taking this news just as hard as he was. He couldn't tell her it himself. He had to tell Irvine so that he could tell Fiona. He felt like the least he could do for her would be to be the one to tell Fiona but he wasn't even allowed to even be seen with her anymore. Hiltz had eyes on him so he knew if he did Hiltz would know this time.

'Am I really going to have to propose to Amy after graduation?' Van asked himself sadly. He liked Amy but she wasn't the type of person that he could ever see spending the rest of his life with, Fiona was and now he couldn't even touch her or even be close to her.

He couldn't even find the strength to get up each day. His mother had to force him to get up to take his finals. Even then he found it hard to concentrate with Fiona constantly on his mind. Sometime he wished that he could turn back time and just stop himself from asking Amy out.

Right now he was stuck in his graduation rehearsal and having the worst time of his life. He could see Fiona standing before him in the line which was how it was arranged with the valedictorian and salutatorian leading the lines with the class officers following behind them followed by the rest of the class. Van being the class president, had to follow almost right behind Fiona.

He saw the hurt on her face and knew he was the cause of it. He knew he was the biggest of idiots for allowing things to get as bad as they were. He didn't think there was any chance of him ever being able to be with Fiona again if he was going to be married to Amy.

"Alright class, this is how it's done. The valedictorian salutatorian shall lead the class down the isle and then will separate and head to their places on the stage with the teachers. While the class officers shall lead the rest of the classes down the rows. Van and Irvine shall lead row one, Tommy and Melanie shall lead row three, and so on," Dr. D explained as he tried to get everyone in order.

It seemed like hours after that of being close yet not touching Fiona that Van felt relieved to finally be out of it and headed home. He didn't wait to see if anyone wanted to talk to him before he grabbed his gown, cap, and tassel, which were given out during graduation rehearsals which meant you had to come if you want to graduate, and drove away as quickly as possible.

He walked into his house sadly. He saw his mother on the phone and she smiled and hung up as she walked over to him. "Why have you been so sad lately? You're graduating. I thought you would've been happier about it," she said as she hugged her son. "You're father's going to be home tomorrow to see you graduate," she said with a smile.

"Yippee!" Van said with a high level of sarcasm in his voice. "You get to see the biggest day of my life when I propose," Van said but his mother must've taken it a way that he didn't mean for it to be because a smile broke out on her face.

Julie wrapped her son in a tight hug. "I don't believe it, you're finally going to propose to Fiona?" she asked happily as tears of happiness rolled down her cheeks. "Just wait till your father hears about this," she said but she frowned when Van just pushed her way. "Van?"

"I'm not proposing to Fiona, I'm proposing to Amy," he said sadly and he saw the look of confusion in his mother's eyes. "I have no choice in the matter. Hiltz threatened everyone I cared for and I know that he's not bluffing because I've seen what he had," Van said as he felt his own tears starting to fall. One's that he'd been trying to hold in all week.

Julie knew that this too big for Van to handle. She really to call Dan and get him down here immediately. "Van, why don't you go up to your room and get some rest. I'll call your father and talk to him about it," she said finding it hard to see such a defeated look in her son's eyes,

She looked at her son as he walked up the stairs and the picked up the phone and dialed her husband's cell phone number. "Damn it Dan! Pick up the phone!" she yelled when it didn't seem like he was going to answer.

Finally the phone was picked up and Dan's voice was heard. "Hello," a tired voice on the other end of the line picked up. It was clear that he was trying to get some sleep before his drive back to the city the next day.

"Dan! Something serious is about to happen and you need to get down here immediately!" Julie said with urgency in her voice. She could almost hear Dan jumping at the tone of her voice. "Get back here immediately unless you want Van to propose to Amy!" she said before she hung up the phone. The less time talking would mean the faster he could get there.

* * *

Moonbay and Tricia both didn't know what to do with Fiona. Ever since Irvine told them what was going on, Fiona had been so closed off with the rest of her friends. Unless it was necessary, she wouldn't even try to come out of her own room. They could often hear her crying as well. 

"I just don't know what to do Moonbay. My only child is in pain and I can't do anything about it. Fiona had the special bond with Van that I never had with her father so I can't say I know what she's going through," Tricia said sadly as she drank something to calm her down.

"Unless she gets Van back, I don't think that she'll ever fully get over it. Even if she does try to get on with her life," Moonbay said in just the same tone as she leaned back in her seat. She came over to try and help Fiona but she failed at it.

Suddenly, the two of them heard the sound of footsteps coming towards them. They both turned in that direction and saw Fiona walking towards them. Her head was down and her eyes were dull. She wasn't the normal Fiona that they all knew and loved. This just seemed to be a shell of the woman they once knew.

Fiona didn't seem to look at them. "I'm sorry to worry both of you," she said sadly as she continued. "It's just that it hurts too much," she said as her body shook but then she was wrapped in an embrace by Moonbay and her mother.

"I know it must hurt you Fiona. I don't blame you for feeling this way," Moonbay said as she walked Fiona over to the couch and sat her down. "Like you, I wish that things didn't have to turn out this way. You deserve better than this," she said as she handed Fiona a cup of coffee.

Fiona just sat there with the cup of coffee in her hands. She just stared at it making it look like she wasn't even going to drink it. "Is there anything Van can do?" she asked as her voice shook even more. She wished there was something that she could do but she couldn't even talk to Van anymore.

This time it was Moonbay that couldn't look at Fiona. "It doesn't even look like Van has the energy to do anything either. Irvine's helping him but each time they fail, it just seems to sap more of Van's strength. They're doing what they can though," Moonbay said in a soft tone as she wrapped her arms around Fiona's shoulders.

Fiona just shook even more at this news. "Then that means that it's really over huh?" she asked as more tears escaped from her eyes. "I'll never be with him again, will I?" she asked as she just curled up and sobbed even harder.

"Don't say that Fiona. I'd say it won't be over until they're actually married. A miracle could happen Fiona," she said and she was glad when she saw that Fiona seemed to settle down at these words. "Come on. You really need to get out and relax. It'll be my treat," Moonbay said as she lifted Fiona up and was glad when she saw that Fiona wasn't struggling much.

'Maybe if I can get her mind off of it for a little while, she might get better. I'm afraid she'll get herself sick if she keeps this up. She hasn't eaten or slept much in the past few days. Please let this work,' Moonbay thought leading Fiona out to the car that Irvine leant her for the day. He too wanted to help Fiona and was willing to do anything to help.

Moonbay took Fiona out to get a massage first. She got help from Van's mother with the costs since this place was first rate but the woman didn't care because she was looking after the woman she thought of as a daughter.

It seemed that during most of that time Fiona actually seemed to be relaxing a bit. It warmed Moonbay's heart to see that she didn't seem quite as sad as before. Moonbay always thought a massage was a nice way to be able to relax.

By the end, Fiona at least didn't have the extremely sad look on her face but Moonbay knew that it probably wouldn't last long unless she did something about it. She just hoped that she could at least get a smile out of Fiona before the end of the day but she knew that even she might be aiming high but she didn't care.

Fiona did her best to try and forget everything that day. It seemed to work for a while but it came rushing back to her shortly after they left the building. She did her best not to show the pain still on her face because she knew Moonbay was doing her best to make her happy. Just caring for her like that, made Fiona slightly happier.

Moonbay led Fiona to a small restaurant and Fiona was glad when she saw that Irvine was there waiting for the two of them. She hadn't seen him much for the past few weeks and hardly at all this week. 'Then again, I haven't seen anyone most of the week,' she thought before shaking her head to get rid of the thoughts.

Fiona walked over to Irvine and gave him a sisterly hug. "Hey Irvine," she said before pulling away and taking a seat at the three person table. "We haven't gotten to do this for a while," she said just thinking of the three being together. She was with Van or else she was moping.

"I guess so," Irvine said leaning back in his seat while drinking the coffee that he had ordered while he waited for the two ladies. He wanted to ask Fiona how she was holding up but thought against it. She seemed to be more relaxed than Moonbay had said and he didn't want to ruin it.

"We're finally graduating tomorrow. I thought this day would never come," Moonbay said with a smile on her face at the thought of it. She even thought she saw a hint of a smile flicker on Fiona normally beautiful face.

"I guess," Fiona muttered as she took a coffee that was just brought to the two of them. After adding a bit of salt to it, she took a sip much to Irvine and Moonbay's disgust. "Then I'll be able to get out and forget all my problems here," she said and both Irvine and Moonbay frowned.

"How you doing about it Fiona?" Irvine said figuring that she was the one who brought it up first. "Are you going to be ok?" he asked as he placed a hand on the woman's shoulder.

Fiona looked at Irvine with a monotonous face but then she actually managed to get a smile on her face. "I'm sure if I still have friends like you and Moonbay, I'll be able to make it through this," she said although she didn't show them how much it hurt to talk about it.

She then turned her attention back towards the cup of coffee before her. 'I hope that I'll be able to get over this. I don't think I'll ever be able to forget Van even if I wanted to,' she thought as she stirred the coffee around a bit.

* * *

Dan sighed as he stepped out of the car of his office building. It was a long drive that took all night but he knew that this was more important than anything else. 'How could things have gotten as bad as they did just after I left?' he asked himself as he walked into the building. 

Dan had set out to find anything that would help him but everyone that he went to didn't seem to have a clue as to what happened then. He was at square one except for that information of the meetings. It wasn't enough though.

He saw his wife's car was there and smiled knowing that he didn't have to wait to get started. He wanted more than anything to just get this over with. He wanted his son's freedom again and the safety of his family to be ensured. Without knowing who did it, he wouldn't be able to end it though.

He walked into the building and saw that his wife was waiting in the lobby on the bottom floor for him. The place was empty since it was earlier than most to even come in. There were just a few security guards walking around but they didn't pay much attention to Dan or his wife since they knew them.

"Hey honey," Dan said as he walked up and gave his wife a hug and a kiss before they headed towards the elevator. Rosso and Viola were there also so they might get some answers with any luck. "What happened?" Dan asked as he held his wife close to him.

Julie took a deep breath before she spoke. "Since last Saturday, I've seen Van walking around like that of a zombie. He avoided Fiona whenever possible and also kept to his room unless he was forced to leave. Then yesterday he just came home from his graduation rehearsal and when I said you would be back for his graduation, he just said, 'Yippee! You get to see the biggest day of my life when I propose.' I asked him about it being Fiona and then he just said, 'I'm not proposing to Fiona, I'm proposing to Amy.' I don't know what to do Dan," she said looking like she was on the verge of crying.

Dan growled at what he was hearing. "Hiltz must've pulled something big to get Van to leave Fiona to propose to Amy," he said not really even trying to hide the malice that was very clear in his voice.

"That's what I figured too. Van was gone for a short time last night and I went into his room and found these," she said and handed Dan a manila fouler that looked and weighed like it had quite a few papers in it. "Van really did have no choice in the matter," she said sadly as Dan grabbed the folder.

Dan opened it up and read the stuff and knew that what he predicted had happened. He suddenly smiled because he just knew that the spy must've struck again. "It may not be over yet honey," he said as the elevator came to a stop on the top floor.

Rosso and Viola were already there waiting for him. He didn't say a word but just motioned them towards his office. He did hand the Folder to Rosso to look over though. The four of them walked in and Dan opened the window to the black night. He could see the sun just starting to rise in the horizon.

"Do you have the surveillance tapes Rosso?" Dan asked at the red haired man nodded his head and pulled out a small stack of tapes from a bag he had around his shoulders. "This may just give us a few answers," Dan said taking the tape of the last Friday night. He knew it had to happen then because he kept a close eye on things before then.

He walked over to a TV that was on the other side of the room and placed the tape in. He turned the TV on and pressed play and they watched the tape for a while without anything happening. Dan fast forwarded it when needed until they finally saw what they were looking for.

On the tape was the man that Dan suspected the most. "Look what we found," he said as he watched Derek walking through the room before stopping at a cabinet and opened it. He looked through the files before finding what he was looking for and pulling it out.

Dan stopped the tape right there and had a pondering look on his face. "We did a research of the files in that cabinet," Rosso said looking over the folder Dan handed to him when they walked in. "This does look like something that would fit into it," he finished placing the folder back on the desk.

"This is very serious. All of this has been happening behind my back for years and I'll more than likely be the one to be blamed for it," Dan said rubbing his chin which looked like it hadn't been shaved in a while. "Get Derek in here immediately!" Dan growled out showing anger on his face.

"Yes sir!" Rosso said before leaving the room. It was silent until he came back a few minutes later. "He didn't sound happy about it but he's on his way down here now," Rosso said as everyone got comfortable while waiting for his arrival. They would have answers from him.

Julie looked at her husband with a worried expression. "Would you really be arrested if these got out?" she asked and just saw him shrug. "Is there anyway that you can possibly get out of it?" she asked sadly. She didn't want to lose her husband like Van lost Fiona.

"Maybe with some time but I don't have that time right now. I need answers before Van's graduation. It'll be a lot easier without Hiltz in the way though so I have to take care of that first," he said with an intense look of focus on his face.

It was silent in the room after that. After almost two hours, the doors finally opened and Derek came walking into the room looking both confused and tired since it was only seven in the morning. He normally didn't come in for another hour. "You wanted to see me?" he asked looking at the four people in the room. "Oh hello Mrs. Flyheight, nice to see you again," he said but she just nodded in return.

Dan just picked up a remote and pointed it towards the TV where the images that they saw earlier started playing. He watched Derek's eyes widen in surprise as he watched the scene. Mind telling me what you were doing taking stuff that late at night? Mind telling me what it was you took?" Dan asked turning off the recording.

Derek pulled at the collar of his shirt nervously. "I was just going over some old documents sir," he said in what would've been a convincing voice had he not been so nervous. "I needed to for a decision I needed to make about a deal offered to us," he continued nervously.

Dan knew that he wouldn't be lying. There was a deal but not one offered to the two of them. It was just to Derek. "Dan stood up and walked towards Derek who watched him carefully. Dan suddenly grabbed him by the fly. "Don't you dare lie about it. Isn't it weird that the document that was taken somehow ended up in Hiltz's hands?" Dan asked with venom dripping from his voice.

Derek struggled to get free but couldn't seem to break out of Dan's grip. "I-I don't know what you're talking about sir!" he said clearly very scared at being caught. He felt Dan's hands tighten around the collar. "i-I never gave him anything!" he squealed out as he struggled more.

"I said not to lie! You gave it to Hiltz in order to take control. He made promises didn't he? He said he'd give you control of the company when he took it over, didn't he?" Dan said as he threw Derek off to the side. "It's because of you that my son has no real future right now!" he said his eyes blazing with hatred for the first time in his life.

Derek was purely terrified. He'd worked for Dan for years and this was the first time that he ever saw him this angry. He didn't even know that the normally kind man was even capable of such animosity. He couldn't say anything in his defense though. He knew it was all true too.

"Answer me damn it!" Dan yelled but calmed down slightly when he felt his wife's hand on his shoulder. "I have a deal for you though," Dan said after taking a deep breath. "You help me fix this mess that you got my son and family in and I won't have you thrown in jail," he said glaring at the cowering man.

Derek looked up at Dan in shock. He hadn't been expecting that. He expected to be hit and then thrown in jail for the rest of his life. He wouldn't put it put it past Dan either while he was in his current state.

Dan was growing frustrated and looked towards Rosso who just nodded. He walked over to Derek and lifted him to his feet none too gently. "Tell me something that'll get my family out of this mess!" he yelled as he grabbed Derek again.

"Fine! Just please don't hurt me!" the cowardly man yelled looking in fear into Dan's dark eyes. "Hiltz has been involved in some secret smuggling operations for years. He's had me in charge of them for years. Afterwards he makes sure that every last trace of it is destroyed so that nothing could be traced back to him!" the man yelled in his fear.

Dan couldn't believe what he was hearing. He just knew that this would be the perfect thing to end all of this. He also knew that Hiltz would have no other choice but to accept his own terms. "Good," Dan said as he started to walk to the door.

Derek couldn't believe that he just got off with nothing but a yelling at after all that he'd done. He smiled as he got to his feet and dusted himself off. He just knew that he wouldn't be as lucky when Hiltz learned that he'd told his biggest secret.

Dan suddenly stopped before he reached the door and turned around to face the man. He walked back towards him and before Derek even realized Dan punched him in the side of the face with all his strength making him fly back and hit a wall hard. "By the way, you're fired!" he said before finally leaving the office.

Him and Julie got into the elevator and pressed the button for the bottom floor. Julie looked up at her husband with hopeful eyes. "Does this mean what I think it means Dan?" she asked him as she clutched onto the front of his shirt. She couldn't help but hope that this meant that her son could be happy again.

Dan looked towards his wife and all of his anger from before suddenly faded and a big smiled crossed his face. "Possibly. I still have to talk to Hiltz though and I expect that he won't go down without a fight. I want you to head to Van's graduation and I'll meet you there when I get done with the meeting. Hopefully, everything will go fine," he said kissing her before heading to his own car.

* * *

Van just sat there on his bed long after he woke up. He just stared up at the ceiling of his room without any real thoughts of getting out of his bed. He just didn't seem to see the point. Sure he was going to graduate but he just didn't feel like going. 

Suddenly the door to his room opened and Irvine came walking into the room with a broad smile on his face. "What, you're still in bed?" he asked a bit amused although he was just trying to make this dark situation look lighter. "Come on, we have a graduation to get to," he said pulling on Van's arm.

"Just go without me Irvine," Van muttered as he toyed around with something in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked a small velvety case. "I consider this a prison Irvine. One that I'm locked in and the only key was destroyed," Van muttered as he twirled it around in his fingers.

Irvine looked at it and just knew what it was. "That the ring?" he asked and just saw Van nod his head. "Van the least you could do is show Hiltz that you're not as weak as he's making you out to be!" Irvine said getting angry at his friend. Sure he wished that there was something he could do but they tried everything and it failed.

Van just ignored Irvine's statement and opened the case to see a really expensive and fancy looking diamond ring. "Hiltz gave it to me to use. After graduation, he wants me to propose to Amy in front of the entire school. Everyone will know that we're getting married," Van said snapping the case shut and turned on his side away from Irvine.

Van sighed finding that he really couldn't blame Van for how he was reacting. "Be strong for Fiona. She's just as torn up about this as you are. Maybe if she sees you being strong, then she might get the strength to be strong as well," Irvine said and was glad when he saw Van finally sit up.

Van felt so bad for putting Fiona through this. If he had known that Fiona would be hurt in this way, then he would've never tried to get involved with her the way that he did. "How can I actually go through with this Irvine? Proposing to Amy while the one I really love has to watch," Van said as he stood up and walked to his closet.

Irvine really didn't know how to answer Van without making things worse. "Maybe the two of you can just run away together. Go somewhere where no one has ever heard of you," Irvine suggested with a chuckle.

Van just sighed as he looked at himself in the mirror of his bathroom. "It wouldn't stop Hiltz from ruining her family as well as mine. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that was to ever happen to either. Especially since it would be my fault that it happened," he said before he slammed his fist down on the sink.

Irvine really didn't know how to answer that. He looked down at his watch and saw that they really needed to leave if they were planning to get down there on time. "We should really get going Van," Irvine said before turning around and walking out of the room.

Van sighed once again knowing that there wasn't any way he was going to escape his fate. "If a miracle was to happen, I sure hope that this is the time," he said to himself before following after Irvine.

* * *

Hiltz found himself in his office running a bit late. He suddenly had important business to finish before he would be able to head to his daughter's graduation and his ultimate victory. He would soon have all that he wanted for the past several years. 

He just finished the papers he needed to do and was about to leave when there was a sudden call in from his secretary. "Sir, there a visitor here to see you and he says that it's urgent," the woman said over a speaker on the desk.

Hiltz growled in annoyance at yet another setback to getting there. He wanted to be there to witness his victory. "Fine then, send him in but tell him that I'm in a really big hurry," Hiltz said once again taking a seat behind his desk and watching the door as he heard footsteps approaching.

The next moment he was highly surprised when he saw that it was Dan Flyheight that walked through the door. "Dan Flyheight, what a pleasure it is to see you. I was just about to head down to the graduation," Hiltz said with a smile on his face as he started to walk to the door.

Dan looked over at Hiltz and managed a fake smile of his own. "As was I but there was something very important that I wished to discuss with you if you have the time," Dan said although he planned to talk about this whether he had the time to talk or not.

"Fine then but we really need to be quick. The graduation is in an hour and I also heard from your son that he was planning something for my daughter. Can't wait to see what it is," Hiltz said with that cruel smile still on his face as he started to pack away his things inside his briefcase.

Suddenly Dan was the one with the smirk. "Oh I already know that you know exactly what it is that Van is going to do, propose," Dan said and he saw Hiltz's head snap up in slight surprise. "I must admit that I was highly surprised when I heard this because it came so suddenly," Dan said as he waited in front of the desk.

Hiltz sighed a breath of relief because he thought that Dan might've known his plan for a second. "How is it such a surprise? They have been going out for more than four years. They're adults now and are free to get married if they want," he said closing his briefcase.

Dan suddenly grew serious but Hiltz didn't notice since his back was turned on Dan. "It was a surprise because both you and I knew that he had no intention of proposing to Amy until you forced it upon him!" Dan said sternly which caused Hiltz to suddenly freeze up.

Hiltz was beyond pissed. He told Van that his father wasn't supposed to know anything. 'He has the gall to betray me,' he thought angrily before turning towards Dan with a smile plastered on his face. "I have no idea what you're talking about Dan. Is Van telling stories or something?" he asked in a very good display of acting.

Dan wasn't even the least bit fooled by Hiltz's acting. "On the contrary. He's only been with Amy for years because you've threatened my family. Yes I know all about that. It wasn't Van who told me though," he said with a smirk on his face. He was pushing Hiltz into a corner and Hiltz knew that.

'I still don't know what you're talking about Flyheight. Van has stayed with my daughter all these years because he loves her. I haven't even tried to interfere with it. So don't go throwing around accusations without any proof," Hiltz said with a rather harsh bite to his voice.

"I have plenty, including all the information that you've been holding over Van all these years. I'm not stupid Hiltz. Both you and I know that Van loves someone else. I'm sure that Derek has already told you that. He told me everything about what you've been doing as well as Van filling in all the gaps," Dan said to his surprise, Hiltz just laughed. "May I ask what's so funny?" Dan said eyeing Hiltz suspiciously.

Hiltz just continued to laugh at Dan. "So you figured it out did you? What exactly are you going to do about it? I'm sure you don't want your family to lose everything. You can't do anything about it Dan. We both know that," he said as he continued to laugh. He dug the whole family into a hole and there was no escape.

Dan just smirked at his statement. "On the contrary. I know all about the smuggling operations that have been going on for years in your company that you willingly participated in," Dan said and he saw Hiltz go extremely pale extremely fast. "Sure you can live without ours since you have plenty of money yourself but you wouldn't put your daughter through losing everything of yours."

Hiltz glared angrily at Dan. "You have absolutely no proof about any of this. Where do you get the gall to interfere like this?" he asked glaring angrily at the man before him. This was why he didn't want Dan to know, he was too smart for his own good. He would definitely find a way to get Van out of his scheme.

"I have a participant who is more than willing to vouch for my claims. It's over Hiltz. I want you to stay away from my family. My son is not going to marry your daughter like you wanted. Should you try to interfere with his life or my family again, I'll make sure that you're ruined," Dan said before leaving the room.

Dan knew that what he was doing was nothing different from what Hiltz did to Van in the first place but he was protecting his family and Hiltz was just trying to satisfy his greedy ends. 'You better appreciate what I just did for you Van,' Dan thought with a big smile.

Back in the office, Hiltz collapse in his chair. All of his plans had failed. 'How dare he interfere!' he thought angrily in his mind as a fist slammed down onto the desk. "I was so close. I would've had everything but Van decided to betray our deal and now I have nothing to gain!' he thought as he watched the door close in front of him.

* * *

Fiona watched as all the students and teachers scrambled around to crowded cafeteria trying to get all last minute preparations finished. The students were trying to get on their robed and the teachers were trying to make sure that everyone was there and presentable. 

"So is your speech all prepared Fiona?" Dr. D asked as he walked up to Fiona. He was dressed in the teacher's robes and he looked kind of sad. He wouldn't say it but he enjoyed teaching all of the students over the past four years and he would really miss some of them.

Fiona looked down at several cards in her hand. "I guess so. I worked hard on the speech but it doesn't seem like it's enough anymore. I wrote it when everything was going good in my life but now that bad things have been happening, it just doesn't seem quite like the right thing to say anymore. There's much now that I wished I could've said but can't with this speech," she said sadly as her eyes drooped.

"Bad things happen to good people. That's what I've seen in all of my years as a teacher. If the speech doesn't seem good enough, then you don't have to use it. What you need to do is speak from your heart," he said with a smile before he walked away to check on the rest of the student.

Fiona looked over and saw Van sitting in a corner looking as bad as she was. He also looked like he was trying his best to be invisible. He obviously didn't really want to talk to anyone since when Amy approached, he immediately walked away.

She saw him suddenly stop and reached into his robed and pulled something out of his pocket. It looked like his cell phone. He opened it and put it up to his ear and walked to a quieter place in the room.

"Mr. Flyheight! Will you please turn off that phone and get in line with the rest of the class!" Fiona heard a teacher yell when she noticed that Van was starting to walk out of the room. Van just ignored her and continued to talk into it.

Fiona wasn't sure but for a second, Van almost looked rather excited about something. It was the type of smile that she hadn't seen in such a long time. 'I wonder what could've possibly happened to make him smile like that again,' Fiona thought as she took her place at the front of the lines.

Fiona saw Van come back into the room a minute later. Irvine had approached him and Van said something. The next thing Fiona knew, Irvine had this really shocked look on his face. Yet it was almost a pleased look. Fiona felt like she'd have to remember to ask him about it later. Not like she could talk to Van to find out.

Fiona watched Van walk towards her and take his place at the front of the line almost right behind her. She could feel his eyes on her but didn't respond knowing that it would be no good to either of them if her feelings got the better of her at a time like this. It would only hurt worse in the end.

"Alright everyone, it's time to head out there," the principal said as everyone straightened up quickly for the moment they had been waiting for ever since they started high school. "Straight lines? Alright then let's go," he said leading them out the doors of the cafeteria and down to the football field which was where it was held because of the amount of people it could hold.

The long line of students for the senior class walked down to the football field which was crowded with their families. They went down the middle of the rows of the chairs and when they reached the front, Van turned and walked down the first row while Irvine went the opposite way.

Fiona being the valedictorian went up to the stage where they were expected to sit and was followed by the salutatorian. Fiona felt like laughing. Amy, with all her bragging, wasn't even in the top ten percentile of their class. Fiona didn't understand how she could've thought she'd be made valedictorian.

The principal walked up to the podium and started to speak a few words but Fiona found herself not being able to pay attention. She thought she kept seeing Van look in her direction. 'Maybe it's just my imagination. Why would he when he still has to propose to Amy afterwards? Yeah, it has to be my imagination,' she thought to herself as she tried to look anywhere but in his direction.

As the people seemed to speak. A beach ball suddenly found it's way into the students hands and they were bouncing it all over the place as several speakers tried to speak. It only stopped when a teacher grabbed it and took it from them much to the student's dismay. Van was laughing though. Every senior class had a tendency to do this during graduation every year up till them.

After what seemed like an hour, it was finally her turn to speak. She didn't realize how nervous she was up until that point. Her nervous twisted her hands and walked up to the podium and looked down at the cards in her hand.

"Up until this point, I've had this speech all written out and just waiting to be read. I'm not going to do that though," she said as she set the cards off to the side and then stared at the audience in front of her. She didn't realize how many people there were that came.

Van watched Fiona as she spoke. He noticed how nervous she was but admired how she still managed to speak so calmly all the same. 'She'll be mine soon,' he thought remember the call he got from his father. He couldn't believe that his father actually managed to pull something off like that. Van had just about given up all hope at that point.

He then looked over towards the seats and saw that his father was just getting there and taking his seat next to his mother. His sister was also there to see this moment. Van felt glad that he had a family like that to give him help when he needed it. He saw his father give him the thumbs up and he laughed under his breath.

"So much has happened since all of us have set foot on this school we have been in for the past four years. Many would say that we suffered but I guess they won't anymore," Fiona said and many of the parents and students couldn't help but laugh.

"There are some who would try to forget and then there are the others who just won't be able to forget all the things that have happened to us," she said and took a quick glance in Van's direction before turning her head back quickly and looking at the rest of the students and the teacher.

"We're all here because we never gave up even when the worst could happen. There were many times that I felt like just giving up but I know I must continue no matter what happens. It is something that we should all do. Work hard, have hope, and never regret your actions. We made it all this way and we shouldn't give up now. Live for the future because we are the future," she finished and then there was a huge applause form the students, the teachers, and the parents all around the area.

"She always thinks she's so good. I would've had a much better speech than that," Van heard Amy mutter from two rows behind him. He rolled his eyes and just watched as Fiona bowed her head to them before she walked back to her seat.

'That was great Fiona,' Van thought. He was amazed at how well it fit her situation as well as that of the entire school's. 'We both almost gave up. We never did and you'll finally get what you deserve,' Van thought with a smile as he continued to hear Amy complaining from behind him.

For the next hour, they had one other speech that came from the mayor and then there was the giving out of the diplomas. Then when they were done, they all took their seats once again. It was then that the principal took the stage once again.

He smiled as he looked over all the students before him. "Congratulations all you seniors. You have worked hard for this moment and as stated, never given up to make it where you are today. With that said, I announce you as the class of two thousand and five!" he yelled and several hats went flying up into the air.

The students burst into cheers. And many got up and went to go talk to their families and friends. Van sat for a few seconds and watched Fiona's movements carefully before he too got up. He wanted to talk to his parents first before he confronted Amy and Fiona.

"Congratulations Van," his mother said hugging Van tightly. She seemed to be on a picture taking spree after that. She had to of at least taken fifty pictures with Van and many of his friends. She made sure to save some though for what she knew was about to come. She wanted the rest of them to be for Van and Fiona.

"Yeah, congratulations Van," Dan said when his wife was finally done with him. He couldn't even get a chance to do it up till then. "I think that there's something you need to do first," he said pointing in Fiona's direction.

Van turned and saw Fiona and a soft smile crossed his face. 'Maybe there are such things as miracles,' Van thought as he started to walk in that direction. He felt better than he had in a while. Fiona would get what she's always wanted since they first became friends. They would finally let everyone know that they loved each other.

Unfortunately he didn't get more than a few steps before he was wrapped into a tight embrace by a hyper Amy. 'So close,' Van thought but then thought over that and thought that it was a good time to talk to her. "Hey, Amy there's something I wanted to talk to you about. Can we go someplace else?" Van asked her as calmly as he could. He felt bad for doing it but he couldn't live this lie any longer.

Amy smirked in victory. She just knew that in a few moments time Van would propose to her. "Why do you want to go someplace else? Can't we just talk about it right here?" she asked since she wanted to make sure that everyone could see the day of her ultimate victory.

Van frowned as he looked around at all the people. "I would really like to talk about this someplace else. So let's just go someplace a little more private," he said because he knew that Amy would freak at it and he didn't want all the attention that it was sure to freak.

Amy just smirked because she wasn't going anywhere. She didn't know why Van wanted it to be so secretive about their engagement. "I'd rather not so please just tell me now," she asked with a rather eager tone in her voice.

Van groaned because he knew that he wasn't going to be able to break up with her in private. "I…" he started to say when he saw that she looked rather eager. "I… I want… to break up," he managed to get out. He watched her face as she was paled at his words. It was clearly not what she was expecting.

Amy just couldn't believe what she was hearing. 'That isn't right, he was supposed to propose!' she yelled in her mind as tears started to come to her eyes. "What do you mean you want to break up!" she yelled figuring that it had to be some sort of mistake. She knew he father told him to propose, not break up with her.

Van noticed that everyone seemed to take notice of the volume of her voice. They were all watching them. Most of the students looked like they thought that they heard wrong. The two that were together for four years were breaking up? "Yes," Van said just wanting to look away so that he wouldn't have to see that look in her eyes. It was a rather painful sight.

Amy took a few steps away from Van and shook her head as if she still didn't believe it. Tears were running down her face. "Why! Why are you breaking up with me now when we've been together for four years!" she yelled in his face. She hoped that he would take it back and do as he was supposed to do. She would talk to her father about this later no matter what happens.

"I'm sorry ok, I just… I fell in love with someone else!" he blurted out as he looked towards Fiona who was watching them with wide hopeful eyes. He felt bad for doing this but it was Fiona that he loved and Fiona that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

"Y-y-you can't just do this to me!" she yelled before running away in the crowd. Van wished that it could've gone better but he realized that that was as good as he could get it with someone like Amy. He actually expected it to be a lot worse. He just hoped that she would be fine later.

Van saw that everyone was looking at him right then. Some looked a little appalled at what he did while others looked rather sympathetic towards him. 'Now's your chance,' he told himself and looked in Fiona's direction. He could see Irvine and Moonbay just grinning and moving away from Fiona a little.

Fiona was just staring at him with wide eyes. It was obviously hard for her to believe what was actually happening. He couldn't blame her because things were going in every different direction right then.

Van looked several different directions and saw that almost everyone was staring at him. 'You wished that we could just stop hiding and let everyone know, now here's your chance,' Van thought before a grin spread across his face and he turned his attention back to a better direction.

'Is this really happening?' Fiona asked herself as she saw Van turned to stare at her. "D-did he just do what I think he did?" she quietly said and she just saw that Irvine and Moonbay nodded their heads.

Van took a few steps in her direction and he watched as everyone seemed to realize what he was doing. None of them seemed to know what to expect next. Van felt like giving them something that none of them would ever believe.

He walked up to her and stood in front of Fiona. "This is what you wanted wasn't it?" he asked and before she could even answer he leaned down and captured her lips with his own. He just focused on that and not on the hundreds of disbelieving stares that everyone was giving them.

Fiona just couldn't believe it. Van just broke up with Amy and then he just comes up to her and kisses her. It was more than she could've ever dreamed for. She actually let a tear of happiness fall down her cheeks and she wrapped her arms around Van's neck and pulled him in.

Irvine and Moonbay just grinned and walked away. They didn't want to interrupt this happy moment of theirs. They laughed a bit when they saw Van's mother taking picture after picture of the scene. "Always good to have memories of moments like these," Moonbay said and Irvine just nodded his head.

It wasn't long before people lost interest in the sight and just went about their own business. Van and Fiona didn't even seem to show any sort of sign that they were planning on letting go of each other. If they had it their way, they would never be more than a few feet from each other ever again.

Van held Fiona around the waist and looked down on her shining face. In all the time that he'd known her, he'd never seen her as happy as she was at that moment. "Looks like you're stuck with me from now on Fiona. Think you can handle that?" Van asked with a huge grin.

Fiona just reached up and caressed Van's face. "I'm than able to. Just one question, how exactly did you get away from what Hiltz did?" she asked as he hands were placed over Van's. She did want to let him go because it was too painful trying to force herself away from him for that one week.

Van smirked and leaned down to kiss Fiona. He pulled away and looked into her eyes. "No idea. My dad called me just before graduation to tell me the good news. Ask him if I ever let you go to do so," he said and the two of them couldn't help but laugh.

"Hey Van, are the two of you coming!" Irvine yelled from over where their parents were waiting for the two of them. "Party time! Hurry up or we'll leave you behind!' he yelled before he started to walk to his car.

Van looked down at Fiona. "Shall we go my dear?" he asked and Fiona nodded and the two of them rushed off to catch up with Fiona. They had so much to make up for that they intended to make use of every moment they had from then on.

* * *

I'm putting this out earlier than i thought i would. I have a sequel in the works but I am not going to put it up until i reached 300 reviews. The more you all review, the faster that I'll be able to get it out. 


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